NPR 2009-01-05

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is withdrawing himself from consideration for the next Commerce Secretary. He has been investigated over involvement with a company that did business with his state. NPR’s Alison Keys reports.

The former presidential candidate says the pending¹ investigation² will show that he and his administration “have acted properly at all matters”.  Richardson says he dropped out of the nomination³ process to avoid what he calls “an untenable delay in the face of the gravity of the nation’s economic situation”. There is a grand jury probe into how a company that contributed to Richardson won a lucrative⁴ New Mexico state contract. President-elect Barack Obama says he accepted Richardson’s decision with deep regret and he says he’ll move quickly to fill the void left by Richardson’s withdrawal⁵. Richardson says he will remain as New Mexico’s Governor and he told Mr. Obama he is eager to serve in the future. The President-elect says he looks forward to Richardson’s future service to the country and in the Obama’s administration. Alison Keys, NPR News, Washington.

Thousands of Israeli troops surround Gaza City, the largest urban center in Gaza, embattling Hamas gunmen in the first full day of ground fighting. The BBC’s Tim Franks is at the Israeli border with Gaza.

“This is as close as the Israeli army would allow journalists to Gaza about 2 kilometers from the border. But it is still close enough to see the flashes of explosions, bursting through the night sky to hear the thump⁷ of artillery⁸, such as that in the clatter⁹ of distant gunfire and helicopters. The army has spent a day driving deeper into Gaza. There are now three major areas of conflicts, cutting swathes across the territory. Hamas is saying that close to the Jabaliya refugee camp, its fighters are engaged in a face-to-face battle with Israeli soldiers.” The BBC’s Tim Franks in southern Israel.

The US has blocked the United Nations Security Council from issuing a statement calling for an immediate¹⁰ ceasefire. Vice⁶ President Dick Cheney says Hamas ignored the last one, “You can't simply go back to the status quo ante, what it was a few weeks ago, where you had a ceasefire recognized by one side but not adhered to by the other. It’s got to be a sustainable, durable¹¹ proposition. And Hamas has to stop rocketing Israel. ” Cheney spoke¹² to CBS's "Face the Nation" earlier today. The Israeli attack has drawn¹³ sharp international criticism as the number of civilian¹⁴ death grows. Tens of thousands of people have attended demonstrations¹⁵ in Europe and the Middle East.

Senate Majority leader Harry¹⁶ Reid says the choice to replace Barack Obama in the Senate won’t be seated. Reid says the choice of Roland Burris to become Illinois' next Senator is tainted¹⁷. That’s because Burris was chosen by Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. He is accused of trying to sell Barack Obama’s open Senate seat.

You’re listening to NPR News from Washington.

President-elect Barack Obama and his family completed their move to Washington D.C. today. Mr. Obama’s two daughters begin school tomorrow. They will currently stay at a local hotel. They'll move into Blair House, the traditional home of President-elect on January 15th. They make their final move into the White House on Tuesday, January 20th, after Mr. Obama is sworn into office.

Florida lawmakers gather in special session tomorrow. They’ll consider budget cuts. Tax revenue was down because of the slumping¹⁸ housing market. From member station WMFE in Orlando, Pat Duggins reports.

Members of the Florida House and Senate have to make up for a 2.3-billion-dollar tax shortfall. Republican Governor Charlie Christ is recommending a half billion dollars in budget cuts and over 300 million in borrowing. Sagging¹⁹ tax revenue has been a long-going problem for the Sunshine State, which has cut spending three times over the past year. Cuts at the state level have passed along to local municipalities which depend on state taxes for part of their budgets. State officials are warning counties to expect their gas tax revenue to drop by five percent in 2009 and tourist tax to drop by 10 percent. Monday’s special session deals with plugging holes in the current spending plan. The legislature meets in March to deal with the next fiscal²⁰ budget. For NPR News, I’m Pat Duggins in Orlando.

Russia's state-controlled gas company says it will increase the price of natural gas it sells to Ukraine. Both countries are arguing over natural gas. Russia says Ukraine is stealing it and Ukraine says Russia won't negotiate honestly. Any price increase, and Ukraine says, should come with a hike in the money it gets for letting Russia use the pipelines²¹ to begin with. Relations are strained between both countries over last summer’s Russian invasion of Georgia.

1 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

2 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。

3 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

4 lucrative   

adj.赚钱的，可获利的

参考例句：

• He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
• It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。

5 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

6 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

7 thump   

v.重击，砰然地响；n.重击，重击声

参考例句：

• The thief hit him a thump on the head.贼在他的头上重击一下。
• The excitement made her heart thump.她兴奋得心怦怦地跳。

8 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

9 clatter   

v./n.(使)发出连续而清脆的撞击声

参考例句：

• The dishes and bowls slid together with a clatter.碟子碗碰得丁丁当当的。
• Don't clatter your knives and forks.别把刀叉碰得咔哒响。

10 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

11 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。

12 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

13 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

14 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

15 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

16 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

17 tainted   

adj.腐坏的；污染的；沾污的；感染的v.使变质( taint的过去式和过去分词 )；使污染；败坏；被污染，腐坏，败坏

参考例句：

• The administration was tainted with scandal. 丑闻使得政府声名狼藉。
• He was considered tainted by association with the corrupt regime. 他因与腐败政府有牵连而名誉受损。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 slumping   

大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的现在分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]

参考例句：

• Hong Kong's slumping economy also caused a rise in bankruptcy applications. 香港经济低迷，破产申请个案随之上升。
• And as with slumping, over-arching can also be a simple postural habit. 就像弯腰驼背，过度挺直也可能只是一种习惯性姿势。

19 sagging   

下垂[沉，陷]，松垂，垂度

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is continuously sagging. 敌军的士气不断低落。
• We are sagging south. 我们的船正离开航线向南漂流。

20 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

21 pipelines   

管道( pipeline的名词复数 )； 输油管道； 在考虑（或规划、准备） 中； 在酿中

参考例句：

• The oil is carried to the oil refinery by pipelines. 石油通过输油管输送到炼油厂。
• The oil carried in pipelines. 石油用管道输送。