NPR 2011-01-06

From NPR News in Washington, I’m Lakshmi Singh.

The 112th Congress is in session with a newly empowered GOP. In the House, where Republicans are now in the majority, Congressman¹ John Boehner of Ohio is the new speaker of the House. He says the top priority for Republicans is to reduce the deficit².

"Our spending has caught up with us, and our debt soon will eclipse the entire size of our national economy. Hardwork and tough decisions will be required of the 112th Congress."

Now, new rules for conducting business top the House agenda this afternoon. NPR’s Andrea Seabrook is at the Capitol, where she says voting is expected to get underway soon.

In fact, Lakshmi, they are already voting. The new rules that the House will operate under for the next two year includes a provision that would strip certain delegates, including the delegates from the District of Colombia, Guam, Puerto Rico and so on, from their already limited voting rights on the House floor, and the delegate from Washington DC, Eleanor Holmes Norton, has moved to change those rules or to stop those rules from being enacted³, and the very first recorded vote of this Congress will be to table that motion, and so they are already voting right now on that; otherwise, the Congress will be debating the rules that would govern debate for the next two years. I’m Andrea Seabrook in the Capitol.

In other news, the Labor⁴ Department and coal mine giant Massey Energy have agreed to settle a landmark⁵ lawsuit⁶ against company mining a mine company in Kentucky considered too dangerous to operate without federal court supervision⁷. NPR’s Howard Berkes reports that the agreement still puts the mine under a federal judge’s jurisdiction⁸.

And that judge could cite Massey Energy’s mine managers for contempt of court if they fail to abide⁹ by a long list of safety conditions in the company’s Freedom Mine No.1 in Pike County, Kentucky. The case uses, for the first time ever, a three-decade old enforcement tool considered the toughest under federal law. Massey is already in the process of closing the mine. The settlement seeks to protect about 16 mine workers during the several months it will take to dismantle¹⁰ and remove equipment. Massey does not admit to operating the mine unsafely, but agrees to the safety procedures and court supervision. The company also avoids a hearing that was expected to include testimony¹¹ about production pressure while the mine amassed¹² hundreds of safety violations¹³. Howard Berkes, NPR News.

There are reports of a high school shooting in Omaha, Nebraska. Police say two adult males were wounded, but no students were hurt. They have not confirmed reports that the shooting suspect is dead.

An unexpected jump in hiring is sending bond prices falling sharply and the US dollar rising. Payroll¹⁴ processor ADP reported private companies hired nearly 300,000 people last month. Economists¹⁵ were expecting an increase of 100,000.

At last check, the Dow was up 35 at 11,726. This is NPR.

Police in Morocco say they have broken up a terror cell led by a member of al-Qaeda’s North Africa branch. NPR’s Ofeibea Quist-Arcton reports it’s alleged¹⁶ the affiliate¹⁷ was setting up a base in disputed Western Sahara.

Quoting the Interior Ministry¹⁸, the Moroccan news agency reports the police dismantled¹⁹ a 27-member cell and discovered three weapons caches in Western Sahara, a territory of which Morocco claims sovereignty. The report says the group, allegedly linked to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, was planning suicide bomb attacks against the police in Morocco and bank robberies to finance the group’s activities. A Moroccan government statement says members of the cell were to be dispatched to terrorist training camps in Mali and Algeria. Morocco says the cell is run by a Moroccan based at a camp in northern Mali run by al-Qaeda in North Africa. This al-Qaeda franchise²⁰ launched in Algeria in 2006. Ofeibea Quist-Arcton, NPR News, Dakar.

Shiite Cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, an outspoken²¹ critic of US occupation in Iraq, is back in his own country after living the last three years in Iran. He’s reported be staying in Najaf. An official with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s office says Sadr arrived today but wanted to be low-key possibly because of security concerns. Sadr left Iraq in 2007. It is uncertain if he is back to stay.

On this first day of a new Congress, some Senate Democrats²² planned to propose measures that would make it more difficult for the Republican minority to hold up legislation through filibuster²³. Democrats still control the Senate, but their majority shrank when Republicans picked up more seats in the fall. The GOP is the majority party in the House.

1 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。

2 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

3 enacted   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• legislation enacted by parliament 由议会通过的法律
• Outside in the little lobby another scene was begin enacted. 外面的小休息室里又是另一番景象。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

4 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

5 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

6 lawsuit   

n.诉讼，控诉

参考例句：

• They threatened him with a lawsuit.他们以诉讼威逼他。
• He was perpetually involving himself in this long lawsuit.他使自己无休止地卷入这场长时间的诉讼。

7 supervision   

n.监督，管理

参考例句：

• The work was done under my supervision.这项工作是在我的监督之下完成的。
• The old man's will was executed under the personal supervision of the lawyer.老人的遗嘱是在律师的亲自监督下执行的。

8 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

9 abide   

vi.遵守；坚持；vt.忍受

参考例句：

• You must abide by the results of your mistakes.你必须承担你的错误所造成的后果。
• If you join the club,you have to abide by its rules.如果你参加俱乐部，你就得遵守它的规章。

10 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

11 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

12 amassed   

v.积累，积聚( amass的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He amassed a fortune from silver mining. 他靠开采银矿积累了一笔财富。
• They have amassed a fortune in just a few years. 他们在几年的时间里就聚集了一笔财富。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

14 payroll   

n.工资表，在职人员名单，工薪总额

参考例句：

• His yearly payroll is $1.2 million.他的年薪是120万美元。
• I can't wait to get my payroll check.我真等不及拿到我的工资单了。

15 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 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

17 affiliate   

vt.使隶(附)属于；n.附属机构，分公司

参考例句：

• Our New York company has an affiliate in Los Angeles.我们的纽约公司在洛杉矶有一个下属企业。
• What is the difference between affiliate and regular membership?固定会员和附属会员之间的区别是什么？

18 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

19 dismantled   

拆开( dismantle的过去式和过去分词 )； 拆卸； 废除； 取消

参考例句：

• The plant was dismantled of all its equipment and furniture. 这家工厂的设备和家具全被拆除了。
• The Japanese empire was quickly dismantled. 日本帝国很快被打垮了。

20 franchise   

n.特许，特权，专营权，特许权

参考例句：

• Catering in the schools is run on a franchise basis.学校餐饮服务以特许权经营。
• The United States granted the franchise to women in 1920.美国于1920年给妇女以参政权。

21 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

22 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》

23 filibuster   

n.妨碍议事，阻挠；v.阻挠

参考例句：

• A senator dragged the subject in as a filibuster.一个参议员硬把这个题目拉扯进来，作为一种阻碍议事的手法。
• The democrats organized a filibuster in the senate.民主党党员在参议院上组织了阻挠议事。