NPR 2008-10-24

The Bush administration and Federal regulators are working on a plan to ease pressure on homeowners facing foreclosure. NPR's Giles Snyder has more.

A parade of Federal regulators were on Capitol Hill today including Sheila Bair--the Chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. She told the Senate Banking¹ Committee that the government must help homeowners in order to cool the financial crisis. "Preventing unnecessary foreclosures will be essential to stabilizing² home prices and providing stability to mortgage markets and the overall economy." Bair said the FDIC is working closely with the Treasury³ Department on a plan that includes setting standards for modifying mortgages into more affordable⁴ loans and providing loan guarantees to banks. Meanwhile, former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan testified before House lawmakers. He said he shocked at the breakdown⁶ of the credit markets and wrong to believe that banks would be prudent⁷ because of the need to protect stockholders. Giles Snyder, NPR News, Washington.

The latest weekly employment numbers confirmed what many people already know that the number of people losing their jobs is on the rise. The government announced today the first-time claims for jobless benefits last week rose by 15,000 to a seasonally⁸ adjusted 478,000. That was above analysts¹⁰' estimates and comes at a time a number of firms have announced layoffs¹¹. Goldman Sachs announced today it's cutting just over 3,200 jobs--about 10% of its workforce¹², also announcing job cuts this week, drug maker⁵ Merck which is eliminating 7,200 jobs and Cleveland-based National City Corp which has announced 4,000 layoffs.

Democrat¹³ Barack Obama has gained ground with a voter group considered part of the Republican base. A newly released survey of rural voters indicates a dead heat between Obama and Republican John McCain. NPR's Howard Berkes reports.

A bipartisan survey sponsored by the Center for Rural Strategies polled likely rural voters in 13 battleground states during the first three weeks of October. These are voters who gave President Bush his winning margins¹⁴ and they're considered critical to John McCain's presidential hopes. But the 800 people surveyed were split evenly between Republican McCain and Democrat Barack Obama. Some political analysts believe McCain can't win the nation if he doesn't win rural voters by at least 15 points. The survey indicates that the economy costs McCain rural support. Half the respondents trust Obama more on that issue. But McCain is trusted more on addressing the war in Iraq. Howard Berkes, NPR News.

More signs of domestic automakers are facing stiff headwinds. Chrysler announced today it would cut 1,800 jobs, eliminating a shift at its Toledo, Ohio Jeep plant and accelerating the closure of a sport utility factory in Newark, Delaware. GM announced today it would suspend matching payments to employees' 401k retirement¹⁵ plan as it seeks to conserve¹⁶ cash.

On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 172 points to close at 8,691. The S&P 500 gained 11 points. This is NPR.

The FBI is releasing additional details about threatening letters that went out to Chase Bank branches across the country and contained an unidentified white powder. According to officials with the agency, the letters declared ''It's payback time." Although the FBI says more than 50 letters were sent to bank branches in 11 different cities, some of the letters also apparently¹⁷ carried death threats, officials say so far test of the powder contained in the letters has turned out negative. There've been no arrests in that case.

As the Ted⁹ Stevens' corruption¹⁸ trial continues, jurors asked the judge today to remove one of their panel because of a "violent outburst" but the judge declined. NPR's Nina Totenberg reports.

 The note passed to the judge from the jury foreman read "We the jury request that juror No.9 be removed. She's been rude, disrespectful, unreasonable¹⁹ and" the note said "She's had violent outbursts with other jurors." Juror No.9, an African American woman, is believed to be a bookkeeper for the National Guard. In light of the note, prosecutor²⁰ Brenda Morris suggested that it might be time to contact the alternate jurors who were dismissed yesterday and told to stand ready if called. But defense²¹ lawyers rejected that idea. The judge then called the jurors back into the court room, reminded them they should conduct themselves with civility and mutual²² respect. And after observing that none of them appeared agitated²³, he sent them back to continue their deliberations. Nina Totenberg, NPR News, Washington.

Fire crews near Los Angeles were able to extinguish a wild fire that erupted early this morning near the Getty Center Museum in West Los Angeles. Officials say there were no buildings burned or injuries as a result of the 100-acre fire. Around 400 fire fighters aided by water-dropping helicopters were able to put the flames out. The museum contains priceless works of art.

1 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

2 stabilizing   

n.稳定化处理[退火]v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The disulfide bridges might then be viewed primarily as stabilizing components. 二硫桥可以被看作是初级的稳定因素。 来自辞典例句
• These stabilizing design changes are usually not desirable for steady-state operation. 这些增加稳定性的设计改变通常不太符合稳态工作的要求。 来自辞典例句

3 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

4 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。

5 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

6 breakdown   

n.垮，衰竭；损坏，故障，倒塌

参考例句：

• She suffered a nervous breakdown.她患神经衰弱。
• The plane had a breakdown in the air,but it was fortunately removed by the ace pilot.飞机在空中发生了故障，但幸运的是被王牌驾驶员排除了。

7 prudent   

adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的

参考例句：

• A prudent traveller never disparages his own country.聪明的旅行者从不贬低自己的国家。
• You must school yourself to be modest and prudent.你要学会谦虚谨慎。

8 seasonally   

参考例句：

• The price of vegetables fluctuates seasonally. 蔬菜的价格随季节变动。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They moved seasonally among various vegetation types to feed on plants that were flourishing. 它们还随着季节的变化而在各种类型植物之间迁移，以便吃那些茂盛的植物。 来自辞典例句

9 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

10 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

11 layoffs   

临时解雇( layoff的名词复数 )； 停工，停止活动

参考例句：

• Textile companies announced 2000 fresh layoffs last week. 各纺织公司上周宣布再次裁员两千人。
• Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. 当公司突然宣布裁员时，股票价格便大跌

12 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

13 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

14 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。

15 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。

16 conserve   

vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭

参考例句：

• He writes on both sides of the sheet to conserve paper.他在纸张的两面都写字以节省用纸。
• Conserve your energy,you'll need it!保存你的精力，你会用得着的！

17 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

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 unreasonable   

adj.不讲道理的，不合情理的，过度的

参考例句：

• I know that they made the most unreasonable demands on you.我知道他们对你提出了最不合理的要求。
• They spend an unreasonable amount of money on clothes.他们花在衣服上的钱太多了。

20 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

21 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

22 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

23 agitated   

adj.被鼓动的，不安的

参考例句：

• His answers were all mixed up,so agitated was he.他是那样心神不定，回答全乱了。
• She was agitated because her train was an hour late.她乘坐的火车晚点一个小时，她十分焦虑。