美国国家公共电台 NPR Florida's Governor Race Could Be A Test For Trump

 

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

This fall's governor's races include one in the largest swing state, Florida. The Democratic mayor of Tallahassee, Andrew Gillum, is facing former Republican Congressman¹ Ron DeSantis. NPR's Greg Allen reports on a campaign waged after a late-season hurricane and in the middle of the political hurricane that is the Trump² era.

GREG ALLEN, BYLINE³: It was a noontime rally on a weekday. More than 300 people packed into a college auditorium⁴ in St. Petersburg, there to see Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum. It was one of Gillum's first campaign events after a hiatus while his city recovered from Hurricane Michael.

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ANDREW GILLUM: One week to the day of the storm, 99 1/2 percent of the people in my city had their power back.

ALLEN: The recent hurricane and Tallahassee's response to it has helped put to rest attacks Republicans mounted about his leadership during Hurricane Hermine two years ago. In his campaign speeches, Gillum outlines a series of mainstream⁵ Democratic and progressive proposals. He wants to expand Medicaid under the Affordable⁶ Care Act. He wants to increase the starting salary for teachers to $50,000. And he wants to almost double the minimum wage in Florida to $15 an hour.

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GILLUM: Everybody I know wants to earn enough where they can take care of themselves and their families and maybe take a vacation one weekend out of a year. And that shouldn't be too much to ask in the state of Florida.

ALLEN: If Gillum wins, he'd be Florida's first black governor. Ann Pellishek says she likes Gillum's progressive ideas, his humility⁷ and his charisma⁸. His race, she says, shouldn't be a factor.

ANN PELLISHEK: I lived in Virginia for 30 years. And I will tell you that Virginia is a very conservative state. And we had a black governor, for heaven's sake. So it's not a big deal.

ALLEN: Race has been part of the campaign, however. Talking about the state economy in August, Republican Congressman Ron DeSantis said voters shouldn't monkey this up by electing Gillum - a comment many called out as racist⁹. He's also had to defend his participation¹⁰ in racially charged conferences and his connection with a donor¹¹ who made racist comments about President Obama. DeSantis made a campaign appearance this past weekend at a favorite stop for Republican candidates - a large central Florida retirement¹² community, The Villages.

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RON DESANTIS: It's great to be in America's friendliest hometown.

(CHEERING)

ALLEN: The Villages is Trump country. When asked, about a third of those in the audience said they were part of Villagers for Trump. Sherry Ray drove over from nearby Ocala.

SHERRY RAY: I have tremendous respect for what Donald Trump has done. And I respect that he chose Mr. DeSantis to run, and that's why I'm here. I want to meet him and hear more of what he has to say.

ALLEN: While President Trump didn't actually choose DeSantis to run, his support has made all the difference. The president's endorsement¹³ and his appearance at a rally with DeSantis in Tampa helped boost the former congressman to an easy win in the primary. Since then, DeSantis has concentrated much of his campaign on attacking Gillum. In his speeches, DeSantis calls Gillum a socialist¹⁴, an unfounded label Gillum rejects. Another line of attack by DeSantis has more substance.

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DESANTIS: And I'm the only one of the two of us who can credibly¹⁵ say he's not under FBI investigation¹⁶ for corruption¹⁸, so...

ALLEN: The FBI's investigating city contracts with developers in Tallahassee, including one with whom Gillum went on a vacation to Costa Rica. Gillum denies any wrongdoing and says the FBI told him he's not the focus of the investigation. In his attacks, DeSantis is getting help from President Trump. Over the weekend, the president tweeted that Gillum, quote, "runs one of the worst and most corrupt¹⁷ cities in the U.S." DeSantis picked up the theme against Gillum in a debate Sunday, calling Tallahassee the most violent city in Florida.

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DESANTIS: Andrew couldn't keep Tallahassee safe. He's not the guy to keep Florida families safe.

GILLUM: All right. Well, Ron is being Don - and that's Donald Trump - neglecting all sense of reason and facts. I preside over a city that is experiencing a five-year low in our crime rate on trajectory¹⁹ to be at a 20-year low.

ALLEN: Polls show it's a tight race. Early voting in Florida started Monday.

Greg Allen, NPR News, Miami.

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1 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

2 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 auditorium   

n.观众席，听众席；会堂，礼堂

参考例句：

• The teacher gathered all the pupils in the auditorium.老师把全体同学集合在礼堂内。
• The stage is thrust forward into the auditorium.舞台向前突出，伸入观众席。

5 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

6 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

7 humility   

n.谦逊，谦恭

参考例句：

• Humility often gains more than pride.谦逊往往比骄傲收益更多。
• His voice was still soft and filled with specious humility.他的声音还是那么温和，甚至有点谦卑。

8 charisma   

n.(大众爱戴的)领袖气质，魅力

参考例句：

• He has enormous charisma. He is a giant of a man.他有超凡的个人魅力，是个伟人。
• I don't have the charisma to pull a crowd this size.我没有那么大的魅力，能吸引这么多人。

9 racist   

n.种族主义者，种族主义分子

参考例句：

• a series of racist attacks 一连串的种族袭击行为
• His speech presented racist ideas under the guise of nationalism. 他的讲话以民族主义为幌子宣扬种族主义思想。

10 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

11 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

12 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

13 endorsement   

n.背书；赞成，认可，担保；签(注)，批注

参考例句：

• We are happy to give the product our full endorsement.我们很高兴给予该产品完全的认可。
• His presidential campaign won endorsement from several celebrities.他参加总统竞选得到一些社会名流的支持。

14 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

15 credibly   

ad.可信地；可靠地

参考例句：

• I am credibly informed that. 由可靠方面听说。
• An effective management software ensures network to run credibly. 一个高效的网管软件是网络运行的可靠保证。

16 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

17 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

18 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

19 trajectory   

n.弹道，轨道

参考例句：

• It is not difficult to sketch the subsequent trajectory.很容易描绘出它们最终的轨迹。
• The path followed by a projectile is called its trajectory.抛物体所循的路径称为它的轨道。