CNN 2012-05-13

 Good stuff. On our blog, some of you have been discussing what makes your favorite teacher so good.We're celebrating Teacher Appreciation¹ Week with some of those comments in about seven minutes. I`m Carl Azuz.You're watching CNN Student News.

 

Yesterday we reported on an alleged² terror plot that officials said had been foiled. We said there were still a lot of questions.Now we have some of the answers.The plot was designed to blow up a plane 

 

headed to the United States. What we now know is that the person picked to carry out that attack is actually the person who prevented it. Authorities said the plot started in Yemen with the terrorist group known as Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.Initial reports said the plan was thwarted³ based on a tip from Saudi Arabia, one of Yemen's neighbors.

 

Turns out Saudi Arabia had a mole⁴, a sort of spy inside the Al Qaeda group. He's a Saudi intelligence agent.He volunteered for a suicide mission.Then he took the explosive device that would have been on the plane and turned it over to U.S. intelligence officers and told them about the plot. 

 

Now there's some concern about the fact that all this information was leaked. One source said Saudi officials are upset about the possible risks that this could mean for other undercover agents working inside the Al Qaeda group. 

 

Some U.S. officials are worried that the leak could interfere⁵ with other operations. The U.S. director of national intelligence is launching a review to see if the leak came from an American intelligence agency.

 

All right. Turning to U.S. politics now, we know who the presumptive presidential nominees⁷ are for both the Republican and Democratic Parties, but primary season continues. 

 

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt⁸ Romney won the Republican primaries in North Carolina, Indiana and West Virginia on Tuesday. Not a major surprise. He is the presumptive nominee⁶. But it`s not all about the White House in these primaries. Voters also cast ballots⁹ for state and local elections this work. In North Carolina, that included a vote on a constitutional amendment¹⁰.

 

We talked about this earlier in the week.The amendment would change the North Carolina constitution to say,quote,"Marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid¹¹ or recognized in North Carolina."

 

The unofficial results from Tuesday's primary showed that around 61 percent voted for the amendments¹².Around 39 percent voted against.One critic called the amendment discrimination. She said, quote,"It gives the majority the chance to vote against the minority." 

 

But a supporter of the amendment responded,quote,"We are not anti-gay.We are pro-marriage."

 

A recent Gallup survey shows the country overall is more closely divided on the issue. According to that poll, about 50 percent of Americans believe same-sex couples should be allowed to marry. Around 48 percent say same-sex marriages should not be legal.

1 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

2 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

3 thwarted   

阻挠( thwart的过去式和过去分词 )； 使受挫折； 挫败； 横过

参考例句：

• The guards thwarted his attempt to escape from prison. 警卫阻扰了他越狱的企图。
• Our plans for a picnic were thwarted by the rain. 我们的野餐计划因雨受挫。

4 mole   

n.胎块；痣；克分子

参考例句：

• She had a tiny mole on her cheek.她的面颊上有一颗小黑痣。
• The young girl felt very self- conscious about the large mole on her chin.那位年轻姑娘对自己下巴上的一颗大痣感到很不自在。

5 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

6 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

7 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

8 mitt   

n.棒球手套，拳击手套，无指手套；vt.铐住，握手

参考例句：

• I gave him a baseball mitt for his birthday.为祝贺他的生日，我送给他一只棒球手套。
• Tom squeezed a mitt and a glove into the bag.汤姆把棒球手套和手套都塞进袋子里。

9 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

11 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

12 amendments   

（法律、文件的）改动( amendment的名词复数 )； 修正案； 修改； （美国宪法的）修正案

参考例句：

• The committee does not adequately consult others when drafting amendments. 委员会在起草修正案时没有充分征求他人的意见。
• Please propose amendments and addenda to the first draft of the document. 请对这个文件的初稿提出修改和补充意见。