俄亥俄州民主党州长候选人艾米·阿克顿回击了共和党人维韦克·拉马斯瓦米，针对后者一则颇具争议的广告——该广告使用了阿克顿与其关系疏远的母亲。阿克顿对MS NOW的《早安乔》节目表示，她的对手“没有什么下作手段”使不出来。距离选举日仅剩一周多，阿克顿将这场选战定性为关乎俄亥俄州——乃至整个国家——愿意接受何种政治的选择。“体面也在选票上，”她说。
Ohio Democratic gubernatorial nominee Amy Acton hit back at Republican Vivek Ramaswamy over his controversial ad featuring her estranged mother, telling MS NOW’s“Morning Joe” there is “no low” her opponent won’t “sink to.”With Election Day just over a week away, Acton framed the race as a choice about the kind of politics that Ohio — and the country — are willing to accept. “Decency is on the ballot,” she said.
这则60秒的广告于上周发布后引发轩然大波，并招致全国范围的强烈反弹。广告中出现了阿克顿的母亲唐娜·阿瑟，她指责女儿谎报自己的童年经历，包括她关于在贫困中长大、住在帐篷里的说法。拉马斯瓦米的竞选团队为该广告辩护，称其证明阿克顿歪曲了自己的过去。
The 60-second ad, which ignited a firestorm and garnered national backlash when it was released last week, features Acton’s mother, Donna Arthur, accusing her daughter of lying about her childhood, including her account of growing up in poverty and living in a tent. Ramaswamy’s campaign has defended the ad as evidence that Acton has misrepresented her past.
然而，阿克顿表示，她已近五十年没有和母亲说过话。1978年，她和弟弟被从阿瑟的监护权中带走，此前他们的继父因在她12岁时强奸她而被捕并遭起诉。
However, Acton has said she has not spoken to her mother in nearly five decades. She and her brother were removed from Arthur’s custody in 1978 after their stepfather was arrested and indicted for raping Acton when she was 12 years old.
“这不是一个轻松的故事，”阿克顿周一在《早安乔》节目中说。“这是一个悲伤的故事。这是我的故事。”阿克顿称这则广告是政治中“残酷与转移注意力时代”的一部分。她说，人们厌倦了敌意，希望领导人专注于解决问题，并指出俄亥俄州所有五位在世州长——三位共和党人和两位民主党人——都已公开谴责这则广告。
“It isn’t an easy story,” Acton told “Morning Joe” on Monday. “It’s a sad story. It is my story.”Acton called the ad part of an “era of cruelty and distraction” in politics. She said people are tired of the hostility and want leaders focused on solving problems and noted that all five living Ohio governors, three Republicans and two Democrats, have publicly condemned the ad.
“大家都厌倦了这种生活方式，”她说。“他们厌倦了仇恨、混乱和恶毒言辞。他们希望重新有真正解决问题的公仆，而不是制造问题的人。而且善良不是软弱。”
“Everyone is exhausted of living this way,” she said. “They’re tired of the hate and the chaos and vitriol. They want public servants again who actually solve problems instead of making them. And kindness is not weakness.”
阿克顿说，国家需要“两党都有优秀的公仆重新回到岗位上，愿意做让生活变得更好的艰苦工作”。
Acton said the country needs “good public servants on both sides of the aisle, back in office again, who want to do the hard work of making life better.”
这位曾担任俄亥俄州最高公共卫生官员的医生对MS NOW表示，她艰难的童年塑造了她改善人们生活的决心，并使她成为“为我们共同珍视的事物而战的人”。
The physician, who served as Ohio’s top public health official, told MS NOW that her difficult childhood shaped her commitment to improving people’s lives and made her a “fighter for the things that we all hold dear.”
“我知道被落下的感觉，”她说。“我知道挨饿、没有暖气、或者仅仅是在苦苦挣扎的感觉。”阿克顿说，选民们在竞选活动中与她分享了他们自己的经历。
“I know what it feels like to be left behind,” she said. “I know what it feels like to be hungry, or not have the heat on, or be just struggling.”Acton said voters have shared their own experiences with her on the campaign trail.
“我现在一直在路上，人们在听我的故事；我绝不是唯一一个童年经历过一些事情的人，”她说。“在我的州，我们一半的孩子生活在贫困中，某些地区高达70%。当这些人正在为自己牟利和充实腰包时，我的州的人民在每一项指标上都在倒退，这就是我在这里的原因。”
“I’ve been on the road now, and people are hearing my story; I’m not ever the only one who’s been through a thing or two in their childhood,” she said. “Half our kids are living in poverty in my state, up to 70% in some pockets. While these folks are capitalizing and enriching things for themselves, the people of my state are going backwards on every single measure, and that’s why I’m here.”
这位民主党人说，这则广告强化了她的看法，即“我的对手没有什么下三滥的手段使不出来”，她指责拉马斯瓦米“只为自己打算”。随着选举日临近，阿克顿说“体面就在选票上”，并敦促俄亥俄州人“帮助我们反击这一切”，让政治回归更多人性。
The Democrat said the ad reinforced her view that “there’s no low my opponent won’t sink to,” and she accused Ramaswamy of being “just out for himself.”With Election Day approaching, Acton said “decency is on the ballot” and urged Ohioans to “help us push back on this” and bring more humanity back to politics.
“让我们不要屈服于此，让我们不要放弃彼此，”她说。“我看到新的一天正在破晓。”
“Let’s not give into this and let’s not give up on one another,” she said. “I see a new day dawning right now.”
文章《“体面就在选票上”：阿克顿抨击拉马斯瓦米广告中出现她关系疏远的母亲》首发于MS NOW
The post‘Decency is on the ballot’: Acton slams Ramaswamy’s ad featuring her estranged mother MS NOW