跨性别者权利立法收紧与政治话语的演变
近期,美国多州共和党议员正积极推动一系列旨在限制跨性别者权利的新法案。这些立法行动涵盖了广泛的社会领域,从公共设施的使用到就业和住房的保护。例如,堪萨斯州通过了一项备受争议的跨性别者浴室法案,允许人们起诉那些使用与其出生性别不符的公共浴室的跨性别个体。在佛罗里达州,部分议员试图确保公共雇员不被强制要求使用同事偏好的代词。犹他州也在审议移除跨性别者在住房和就业方面反歧视保护的法案。这些举措与特朗普政府在国家层面的限制跨性别者权利的策略相呼应,并标志着一个焦点转移:过去几年,许多限制和法律诉讼集中在未成年人能否接受性别肯定治疗或参与不同体育队伍,而这些新法案主要适用于成年人。部分法案甚至质疑,在州法律的框架下,一个人是否能被视为跨性别者。例如,堪萨斯州的法案还将使那些在州身份识别系统中更改过性别的人的驾照失效。
推动这些法案的倡导者认为,这些措施对于保护女性是必要的,并拒绝跨性别身份的概念,一位犹他州议员直言:“性别根本不存在,它是一个虚构的词语和术语。实际上只有两种性别:男性和女性。”然而,跨性别者权利的支持者则认为,这些努力是歧视性的,即使是对此类议题的辩论,也使得人们更难公开地认同自己的跨性别身份。近年来,民意调查显示,美国民众对某些限制措施(如禁止跨性别运动员参加女子体育比赛)的支持度有所提高,但多数人仍希望跨性别者在就业、住房和公共场所能获得反歧视保护。
在社会议题日益成为政治焦点的背景下,国际舞台也呈现出新的外交图景与国内政治的交织。在德国举行的第62届慕尼黑安全会议上,世界各国领导人就“特朗普时代的外交政策”展开了深入讨论。值得注意的是,多位备受关注的民主党人士,包括加州州长加文·纽森、密歇根州州长格蕾琴·惠特默以及纽约州众议员亚历山德里娅·奥卡西奥-科尔特斯,均出席会议并阐述了他们对美国外交政策的愿景。一位政治战略家甚至戏称:“慕尼黑已成为新的爱荷华(指美国总统初选的早期风向标)。”
这种政治话语的博弈,也延伸至国内媒体监管的争议之中。特朗普政府被指试图压制任何对其不利的电视评论。本周,史蒂芬·科尔伯特(Steven Colbert)表示,其所属的CBS电视台因担心触怒联邦通信委员会(FCC)而未能播出他与一位民主党参议员候选人的访谈。在特朗普执政期间,FCC不仅针对深夜脱口秀节目,还试图处理对保守派的所谓“偏见”。FCC近期确认正在调查的日间节目是**《The View》。该节目因采访了与科尔伯特面临类似情况的德克萨斯州议员詹姆斯·塔莱里科**(James Talerico)而受到审查。讽刺的是,这种“打压”反而对塔莱里科的竞选起到了助推作用,相关访谈片段在YouTube上获得了远超电视节目的观看量,其竞选团队在发布后24小时内筹集了超过250万美元的资金。而在全球舞台的另一端,体育赛事也折射出国家间的多元参与和包容性议题。在刚刚闭幕的冬奥会中,一些项目如女子冰球仅有10支队伍参赛,而越野滑雪则展现了更广泛的包容性,吸引了来自65个国家的近300名运动员,其中包括尼日利亚、委内瑞拉和哥伦比亚等国的选手,他们往往是各自国家在本届奥运会的唯一代表。
Original English
From the New York Times, it's the headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today's Friday, February 20th. Here's what we're covering.Men go in men's rooms and women go in women's rooms. That's a societal norm that needs to stand. In state houses across the country, the Times is tracking how Republican lawmakers are pushing a wave of hundreds of new bills aimed at limiting transgender rights.
The highly controversial transgender bathroom bill will now become law in Kansas.
This week, lawmakers green lit a law in Kansas allowing people to sue transgender individuals who use public bathrooms that don't match their sex assigned at birth. In Florida,
workers should not be forced to choose between their conscience and their jobs.
Some lawmakers are trying to ensure public employees cannot be required to use their co-workers preferred pronouns.
House Bill 404, sex designated housing amendments by repres.
And in Utah, there are bills under consideration that would remove protections against discrimination in housing and employment for transgender people. The moves are in line with the Trump administration's push at the national level to limit trans rights. They also reflect a shift in focus. While many of the restrictions and court fights in recent years have centered on minors, whether they can receive gender affirming treatment or play on different sports teams, these new bills mostly apply to adults. In some cases, they question whether for the purposes of state law, a person can be trans at all. The Kansas bill, for example, would also invalidate people's driver's licenses if they've ever changed their gender in the state's ID system. Advocates pushing for these bills argue they are necessary to protect women. And say they reject the idea of a trans identity, with one Utah lawmaker saying, quote, "There is no such thing as gender. It's a madeup word and term. It's actually just two sexes. There's male and female." Supporters of trans rights, however, say the efforts are discriminatory and that even debating them makes it harder for people to openly identify as trans. In recent years, polling shows Americans have become more supportive of restrictions like barring trans athletes from women's sports, though a majority still want trans people to have protections from discrimination in jobs, housing, and public spaces.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 62nd Munich Security Conference
in Germany. This past weekend, world leaders gathered for the annual Munich Security Conference where the big topic was, "What does diplomacy look like in the age of President Trump?" Notably, a number of prominent Democrats who all have a lot of buzz around them potentially running for president themselves made the trip to pitch their own vision for American foreign policy. We're going to play you three clips of Democrats appearances in Munich. See if you can ID who these potential 2028 hopefuls are. Ready?
Well, I'm I'm here in many respects to remind everyone that Trump is temporary. He'll be gone in a matter of years. States like California are permanent where reliable, stable partners had a chance. Just
next one. The two that I am on the panel with are much more steeped in foreign policy than than a governor is. But um you know, I do think that Ukraine's independence keeping their land mass is the goal. And we have to have a workingclass centered politics if we are going to succeed and also if we are going to stave off the scourges of authoritarianism which also prov
one more time real quick.
I'm I'm here in many respects to remind everyone that Trump is temporary.
The two that I am on the panel with are much more steeped in foreign policy than a than a governor is. We have to have a workingclass centered politics.
That was in order. California Governor Gavin Newsome, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and New York Representative Alexandria Okasio Cortez. At the conference, there were actually so many maybe, possibly, will they, won't they, candidates that one political strategist joked, "Munich is the new Iowa."
Let's just call this what it is. Donald Trump's administration wants to silence anyone who says anything bad about Trump on TV because all Trump does is watch TV. This week, Steven Colbear said his network CBS was too nervous about angering the FCC with its newly revived equal airtime rule to let him broadcast an interview with a Democrat running for Senate. Under Trump, the FCC's taken aim at not only late night shows to tackle perceived bias against conservatives. Your question, what daytime show did the FCC just confirm it's investigating?
The answer,
it's The View.
Oh yes, the countdown.
The View hosted by Whoopy Goldberg among others. It is under investigation for interviewing the same Texas lawmaker, James Talerico, that Colbear said he couldn't broadcast. The administration's crackdown seems to have actually been good for Terico. Colbear put the segment up on YouTube instead, where it's gotten way more views than it ever would have on the Late Show. And Terico's campaign said he raised over $2.5 million in the 24 hours after it was posted.
The Olympics will wrap up this Sunday with the closing ceremony. So, we are here with one last Olympics question for you. Some of the competitions at the games don't actually have that many countries in the mix. Women's hockey, for example, only had 10 teams vying for the medals. But some events are more egalitarian. What sport at this year's winter games had athletes from the most countries competing? The answer, crosscountry skiing, with nearly 300 athletes from 65 different nations. Some of them, like the skiers from Nigeria, Venezuela, and Colombia, are actually the only athlete representing their whole country at the games.
经济政策挑战与消费市场波动
本周,一小部分但颇具影响力的特朗普支持者——自称为“Maha Moms”的群体——指责总统背叛了她们。她们在2024年支持特朗普,此前他获得了小罗伯特·F·肯尼迪(Robert F. Kennedy Jr.)的背书。肯尼迪承诺通过解决毒素、人工色素和杀虫剂等问题来让美国再次健康,这激励了她们。然而,在特朗普签署一项旨在促进除草剂Roundup生产的行政命令后,双方关系出现突然分裂。该除草剂被认为是国家食品供应的关键。这种在多种农作物和家庭花园中使用的农药,一直是“Maha”运动关注的焦点,也是肯尼迪本人重点攻击的目标。在成为卫生部长之前,肯尼迪曾协助赢得一项近3亿美元的陪审团裁决,对象是生产Roundup的公司,理由是该公司明知其产品具有致癌性。就在本周,其母公司表示已达成一项约70亿美元的和解协议,以了结数万起声称该产品导致非霍奇金淋巴瘤的诉讼。该公司坚称该除草剂是安全的,但“Maha”运动对其的担忧与政府部门对其的拥抱态度产生了冲突。一位保守派健康与保健播客告诉《纽约时报》:“女性感觉自己被欺骗了。”另一位在社交媒体上拥有数百万粉丝的知名健康影响者表示:“我从未见过如此程度的愤怒和沮丧。”目前尚不清楚特朗普签署该行政命令前是否咨询了肯尼迪,但一位有影响力的“Maha”活动家表示,这种情况表明,希望减少杀虫剂使用的选民与白宫(后者已任命前化工行业高管和说客来监管)之间存在日益扩大的脱节。
这种围绕特定政策和产品产生的政治分歧,也与更广泛的经济政策及其对国内产业和消费者造成的实际影响紧密相关。本周政府发布的新数据显示,2025年美国整体商品贸易逆差创下历史新高。本质上,美国进口的实体产品数量与出口数量之间的差距从未如此之大。特朗普总统一再承诺,其严厉的关税将通过提振美国制造业和抑制海外商品来缩小这一逆差。但数据显示,情况并非如此。在某些情况下,关税实际上导致进口激增,因为公司采取了“囤货模式”,试图在关税生效前尽可能多地进口商品。尽管美国从中国的进口量显著下降,但从世界其他地区(如越南、墨西哥、印度)的进口量却有所增加。这引发了关于美国是正在减少对进口的依赖,还是仅仅在调整进口来源的疑问。最新数据与其他显示公司迄今为止并未大规模将生产迁回美国的证据一致。过去一年,美国制造商裁员8万。总统可能很快需要对其贸易政策进行大修。最高法院预计将在今天早上对其实施的许多关税的合法性作出裁决。
经济压力不仅体现在宏观贸易数据上,也直接影响着民众的日常生活成本和消费习惯。在经历了上个月席卷美国大部分地区的严寒冬季风暴后,美国人开始收到能源账单。一份天然气账单高达475美元,电费账单更是达到741.98美元。一家弗吉尼亚州的能源公司表示,由于今年冬季家庭供暖的能源消耗量远超过去几十年,客户将看到账单相应上涨。但创纪录的低温并非推高账单的唯一因素。据估计,天然气价格较去年上涨了50%,电力也变得更加昂贵。随着全国各地数据中心的数量不断增加,这一趋势预计将成为一个更大的问题。即使在价格上涨的同时,联邦政府为帮助低收入居民度过冬季而向各州提供的援助资金却在减少。一项为供暖成本提供补贴的计划预算被削减了约三分之一。
最后,近期一位男士在网上抱怨,他撕开一袋情人节限定的Reese's迷你心形巧克力糖,发现它们没有覆盖牛奶巧克力,而是覆盖了一种不能合法称为牛奶巧克力的“巧克力味涂层”。这位男士最终将整袋糖果扔掉了,这是他一生中第一次扔掉Reese's产品。这之所以引起关注,是因为这位男士名叫布拉德·里斯(Brad Reese),他是Reese's花生酱杯发明者的孙子,尽管该糖果现由**好时(Hershey's)**公司生产。这种配方改变是糖果行业近期趋势的一部分。随着干旱、劳动力短缺等因素导致可可价格飙升,公司一直在逐步淘汰牛奶巧克力。好时公司的其他产品,如Rolo's、Mr. Good Bar和Almond Joy,已不再在其配料表中列出牛奶巧克力。好时公司回应称,经典的Peanut Butter Cups仍按以往方式生产,牛奶巧克力依然存在。但如果查看季节性产品(如心形、复活节彩蛋)的配料表,会发现牛奶巧克力已消失,取而代之的是排在首位的糖和植物油。随着更多公司进行这种转变,消费者可以留意包装是否将其描述为“巧克力味糖果”(chocolatey candy)。
Original English
This week, a small but vocal slice of President Trump's supporters, the self-described Maha Moms, have accused the president of betraying them. They backed Trump in 2024 after he got the endorsement of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. They were galvanized by Kennedy's pledge to make America healthy again by taking on things like toxins, artificial dyes, and pesticides. But there's now been a sudden split after President Trump signed an executive order to boost production of a weed killer often marketed as Roundup, saying it's crucial for the country's food supply. The pesticide, which is used on a wide variety of crops and in home gardens, has been a key concern of the Maha movement and a key target for Kennedy himself. Before becoming the health secretary, Kennedy helped win a nearly $300 million jury award against the company that makes Roundup, claiming it knew it was carcinogenic. Just this week, its parent company said it reached a roughly $7 billion agreement to settle tens of thousands of lawsuits claiming the product caused non-hodkkins lymphoma. The company maintains the weed killer is safe, but the Maha movement's concerns about it are clashing with the administration's embrace of it. One conservative health and wellness podcaster told the Times, quote, "Women feel like they were lied to." And another prominent health influencer with millions of followers on social media said, "There is a level of anger and frustration like I've never witnessed before." It's unclear whether or not Kennedy was consulted before Trump signed the executive order, but an influential Maha activist said the situation pointed to what she called a widening disconnect between voters who want to reduce pesticides and the White House, which has appointed former chemical industry executives and lobbyists to oversee regulations.New data released this week by the government shows that overall in 2025, the country's trade deficit in goods hit a record high. Essentially, the gap between the huge amount of physical products the US imports and the smaller amount it exports has never been wider. President Trump has repeatedly promised his steep tariffs would shrink that deficit by boosting US manufacturing and turning people off overseas goods. But the data shows that's not happening yet. In some cases, the tariffs actually caused imports to spike as companies went into stockpiling mode, trying to bring in as much as they could before the search charges kicked in. And while Americans have notably bought less from China, they bought more from the rest of the world. Vietnam, Mexico, India. That's raised questions about whether the US is becoming less dependent on imports or just shuffling around where it gets them from. The latest numbers are consistent with other data that shows companies have so far not brought production back to the US in mass. In the past year, American manufacturers cut 80,000 jobs. The president could soon need to overhaul his trade policy. The Supreme Court is expected to rule as soon as this morning on the legality of many of the tariffs he's put in place.
Okay, you guys, my power bill is here, my electric bill. Let's see what it is together. After a massive, bitterly cold winter storm hit most of the US last month, Americans are now starting to open their energy bills.
$475 for a gas bill, one month.
And they're finding eyepopping numbers.
I can't pay this. $741.98.
One energy company in Virginia said that since people had used more energy for home heating this winter than they had in several decades, customers are going to see bills that match that. But the record low temperatures are not the only factor driving up bills. By some estimates, the price of natural gas has risen 50% from last year. And electricity is also getting more expensive. A trend that's only expected to become a bigger issue as more and more massive data centers pop up across the country. Even as prices rise, the federal government is offering states less money to help lowincome residents through the winter. The budget for one program that subsidizes heating costs has been cut by about a third.
And finally, a few days ago, a man took to the internet to complain that he just ripped into a bag of Valentine's Day Reese's mini hearts and found they were not good. They weren't covered in milk chocolate, but instead in a chocolate flavored coating that cannot legally be called milk chocolate. The man actually threw the bag away. The first time in his life, he said that he'd thrown away a Reese's. It was kind of a big deal because the man's name is Brad Reese. He's the grandson of the inventor of the Reese's Peanut Butter Cup, though the candies are now manufactured by Hershey's. The recipe change is part of a recent trend in the candy business. As prices for cocoa have climbed due to drought, labor shortages, and other factors, companies have been moving away from milk chocolate. Other Hershey's products like Rolos's, Mr. Good Bar Almond Joy no longer list it in their ingredients. In response to questions, Hershey said that classic peanut butter cups are still being made the way they always have been. Milk chocolate present and accounted for, but if you check the ingredient list for the seasonal varieties, hearts, Easter eggs, it's gone. You'll see sugar and vegetable oil listed first. One thing to look for as more companies make this pivot. Does the packaging describe it as chocolatey candy? That why could be doing a lot of work.