NPR 2010-02-21

President Obama is again pushing for a bipartisan effort to pass health care overhaul¹ legislation while Republican critics continue to push back. In his weekly address, Mr. Obama appeals for a consensus². "I ask members of both parties to seek common ground in an effort to solve a problem that's been with us for generations. It's in that spirit that I've sought out and supported Republican ideas on reform from the very beginning." President Obama plans to hold a bipartisan meeting on Thursday.

Former Secretary of State Alexander Haig, who also served as White House Chief of Staff during the Nixon administration, has died. Haig was surrounded by family when he passed away this morning in Baltimore. He suffered from a staph infection acquired before entering a hospital. NPR's Allison Keyes has more.

The four-star general served as a top adviser³ to three presidents, and he himself mounted a campaign for the nation's top office but dropped out of the race in 1988. In 1973, Haig helped then President Nixon prepare his defense⁴ as the Water Gates scandal blossomed, and he was widely credited with persuading Mr. Nixon to become the first US president to resign. Haig also served the Ford⁵ administration and was President Reagan's secretary of state, but he never lived down his response to the 1981 assassination⁶ attempt on Mr. Reagan. "As of now, I am in control here, in the White House, pending⁷ return of the vice⁸ president and in close touch with him. If something came up, I would check with him, of course." Haig is survived by his wife of 60 years, Patricia, three children, eight grandchildren. He was 85 years old. Allison Keyes, NPR News, Washington.

US and Afghan forces are still facing stiff resistance from insurgents⁹ in Marjah, Afghanistan. But the Pakistani military which appears to be increasingly aligned¹⁰ with US goals is reporting it killed at least 30 militants¹¹ in an air strike along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan. Vir Singh has more from New Delhi.

Pakistan's military says the latest defensive¹² against Taliban fighters was in the mountains between the country's North and South Waziristan regions near the Afghan border. Officials say the air strike was ordered after they received intelligence reports that militants had gathered there. Pakistan, a key US ally, has stepped up operations against the Taliban in its own country and across the border. Earlier this week, Pakistan announced the arrest of a top Afghan Taliban official. The US military which is fighting a ground and air war in Afghanistan has increased the number of missile strikes in northwest Pakistan. US officials say members of Al-Qaeda and the Taliban are using the region to stage attacks. For NPR News, I'm Vir Singh in New Delhi.

From Washington, this is NPR News.

France's largest oil and gas distillery and Europe's third largest energy combined Total is facing shutdowns and gas shortages due to a nationwide strike by its workers. Frank Browning has more on this from Paris.

A strike that began on Tuesday was only supposed to last 48 hours and now has no end in sight and shutdowns began last night. Total's management insisted until yesterday that refining would not be hindered, but the workers upset over the closing of a plant in northern France and supplies would begin to tighten¹³ in a few days. Total made a general promise to save jobs but not to reverse closing its plant near Dunkirk. Workers are also unhappy about Total's strategy of cutting back operations in Europe while expanding in the Middle East. All this comes as France faces a nightmare this weekend on its roads with the opening of the winter school vacation season and traffic exiting the cities described as "cold, blacked". For NPR News, I'm Frank Browning in Paris.

(Britain's government...)In Britain, the government's own human rights watchdog is calling for an independent investigation¹⁴ and claims that it was complicit in the torture of British citizens detained abroad. It's looking into more than 20 allegations.

A new ceasefire puts Sudan one vital step closer to ending the conflict in Darfur. The region's largest rebel group returned to peace talks today to sign a framework for a final agreement. Darfur conflict has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.

We have the results of today's super-G competition of the Winter Games in Vancouver. The gold medalist is Andrea Fischbacher of Austria. Slovenia's Tina Maze¹⁵ wins a silver, American Lindsey Vonn the bronze.

This is NPR.

1 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

2 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

3 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

4 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。

5 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

6 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

7 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。

8 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。

9 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

10 aligned   

adj.对齐的，均衡的

参考例句：

• Make sure the shelf is aligned with the top of the cupboard.务必使搁架与橱柜顶端对齐。

11 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

12 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

13 tighten   

v.(使)变紧；(使)绷紧

参考例句：

• Turn the screw to the right to tighten it.向右转动螺钉把它拧紧。
• Some countries tighten monetary policy to avoid inflation.一些国家实行紧缩银根的货币政策，以避免通货膨胀。

14 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。

15 maze   

n.迷宫，八阵图，混乱，迷惑

参考例句：

• He found his way through the complex maze of corridors.他穿过了迷宮一样的走廊。
• She was lost in the maze for several hours.一连几小时，她的头脑处于一片糊涂状态。