CNN 2009-01-24

Good morning, happy Friday to you, from the CNN center in Atlanta, I'm Reggie Aqui. Here is what's happening NOW IN THE NEWS.

A political mystery finally solved, this morning multiple Democratic sources tell CNN that New York Governor David Paterson has chosen the woman you see there, Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand to fill Hillary Clinton's vacated Senate seat. Gillibrand represents New York's 20th Congressional District and worked on Clinton's 2000 Senate campaign. Paterson is scheduled to make the official announcement at noon Eastern CNN.com/live will take that for you when it happens.

President Obama meets with Congressional leaders to talk about his economic stimulus¹ package. House Committees already approved portions of the 825-billion-dollar plan. The full House could vote on it next week, but not everyone is on board. You see Republicans are working on their own alternatives. They want a better idea how the plan is gonna impact jobs.

In speaking of jobs, motorcycle maker² Harley-Davidson is laying off more than 1000 workers, closing some facilities and consolidating³ others. And another sign of U.S. economic woes⁴, Internet search engine Yahoo says it won't be giving its workers salary increases this year. That decision is part of a cost-cutting plan. In October, Yahoo announced plans that cut about 1500 jobs.

North Korea's leader is looking noticeably thinner. State TV shows these pictures today of Kim Jong-il, meeting with a delegation⁵ from China. The 66-year-old has rarely been seen since he reportedly suffered a stroke last August.

And a starting surprise overnight, Congolese rebel leader Laurent Nkunda is now in custody⁶ in Rwanda. Nkunda has been on the run from Congolese troops. When Nkunda crossed the border, Rwandan police snapped him. The surprise in all of this is that Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo worked together. You see the two countries have been bitter rivals since the Rwandan genocide.

Back here in the States, Tennessee voters have rejected a proposal that would have made English the official language for city business. Immigrants make up about 10% of Nashville's population. Critics said that it encourages discrimination. Supporters of the proposal say it would have encouraged them to learn English.

 That's a quick look at your headlines right now. Please stick here with us at CNN and CNN.com/live for more on these stories and your updates throughout the day.

1 stimulus   

n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物

参考例句：

• Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
• Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。

2 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。

3 consolidating   

v.（使）巩固， （使）加强( consolidate的现在分词 )；（使）合并

参考例句：

• These measures are meant for consolidating the system of basic medical care. 这些举措旨在夯实基层医疗体系，让老百姓看大病不必出远门。 来自互联网
• We are consolidating the Chinese and English versions of our homepage. 我们将为您提供中英文版本一起的主页。 来自互联网

4 woes   

困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉

参考例句：

• Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
• She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。

5 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

6 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。