NPR 2011-01-03

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Nora Raum.

Floodwaters in the Australian state of Queensland are finally starting to recede¹ in some areas, while others towns are still bracing² for the worst. Stuart Cohen reports from Sydney.

The city of Rockhampton in central Queensland is the next one in the path of the massive body of floodwater as it works its way downstream toward the ocean. Authorities there have closed the airport, shut off electricity to some parts and evacuated³ low-lying areas. Local resident Reg Wilson has taken refuge at an evacuation center.

"Well, there was a man came along in a car with a gun on his hip⁴, and he said 'you'll be out of here by five o'clock or else'. And when a man with a gun talks to you like that, you get out."

Authorities are warning people in affected⁵ areas not to underestimate the danger of the floodwaters. A 41-year-old woman died in northern Queensland after her car was washed off a flooded causeway. In other parts of the state, two more people are still missing, one disappeared after going for a swim in a flood-swollen river. For NPR News, I'm Stuart Cohen in Sydney.

A new Congress convenes⁶ this week, one where the Republicans will control the House, and the Democrats⁷ will hold a smaller majority in the Senate. Republican Congressman⁸ Darrell Issa will have the House Oversight⁹ and Government Reform Committee. He said he intends to use his subpoena¹⁰ power to go after wasteful¹¹ spending.

"The sooner the administration figures out that the enemy is the bureaucracy and the wasteful spending, not the other party, the better off we'll be."

Issa told "Fox News Sunday" the White House should hire more accountants than lawyers to deal with requests for information.

White House economic...

1 recede   

vi.退(去)，渐渐远去；向后倾斜，缩进

参考例句：

• The colleges would recede in importance.大学的重要性会降低。
• He saw that the dirty water had begun to recede.他发现那污浊的水开始往下退了。

2 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

3 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

4 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 convenes   

召开( convene的第三人称单数 )； 召集； （为正式会议而）聚集； 集合

参考例句：

• The Premier convenes and presides over the executive meetings and plenary meetings of the State Council. 总理召集和主持国务院常务会议和国务院全体会议。 来自汉英非文学 - 中国宪法
• Chinese woman tenth the National People Congress convenes grandly today in Beijing. 中国妇女第十次全国代表大会今天在北京隆重召开。

7 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

9 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

10 subpoena   

n.（法律）传票；v.传讯

参考例句：

• He was brought up to court with a subpoena.他接到传讯，来到法庭上。
• Select committees have the power to subpoena witnesses.特别委员会有权传唤证人。

11 wasteful   

adj.（造成）浪费的，挥霍的

参考例句：

• It is a shame to be so wasteful.这样浪费太可惜了。
• Duties have been reassigned to avoid wasteful duplication of work.为避免重复劳动浪费资源，任务已经重新分派。