NPR 2011-07-02

Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary¹ Fund, has been freed from house arrest and is no longer on bail². NPR's Margot Adler reports that prosecutors³ now say there are holes in the credibility of the housekeeper⁴ who accused him of rape⁵ at a Manhattan hotel.

Strauss-Kahn's accuser had said she was gang-raped in her country Guinea when she applied⁶ for political asylum⁷. Turns out not true. She misrepresented her income and claimed another child as her own on tax returns. According to the New York Times, she made a phone call to a man in prison for drug charges, discussing whether she should press her case. This man had in the past apparently⁸ deposited cash in the woman's account. Most of these findings have nothing to do with the alleged⁹ rape, and Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said the case goes forward.

"Today's proceedings¹⁰ did not dismiss the indictment¹¹ or any of the charges against the defendant¹²."

Strauss-Kahn will now be allowed to travel within the United States. He still has no passport and can't leave the country. Margot Adler, NPR News, New York.

Thousands of state workers in Minnesota are in limbo¹⁴ with a government shutdown over stalled budget talks. This also means state projects such as roadwork are on hold just as the country gears up for the long holiday weekend. So far this year, Minnesota's government is the only one in the nation to close, and this would be the state's second shutdown in six years.

The Democratic governor of Illinois is looking to narrow his state's budget problems by canceling raises for state employees. Amanda Vinicky, statehouse bureau chief for Illinois Public Radio, says Governor Pat Quinn's proposal comes after the state promised raises in union contracts.

The budget that legislators sent to Govenor Pat Quinn is the most austere¹⁵ that Illinois has seen in quite some time after years of bloated budgets and overspending. They say that they're really trying to rein¹⁶ things in and including they did not give as much money to pay for state employees' salaries.

Illinois Public Radio's Amanda Vinicky.

Authorities in Greece say that they won't allow ships heading to the Gaza Strip to leave Greek ports. Several hundred activists¹⁷ in nine ships are waiting to sail to the Palestinian territory. We have more from Joanna Kakissis.

The Greek coast guard said it intercepted¹⁸ a ship called "The Audacity¹⁹ of Hope" after it left the port of Perama near Athens. The ship is carrying 36 Americans including Pulitzer prize-winning writer Alice Walker. Donna Nevel, a spokeswoman for the ship, said that passengers told her the coast guard forced them to stop sailing and is diverting them to another port. The Obama administration and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have told activists not to sail to Gaza. A spokesman for the Greek Foreign Ministry²⁰ said Greece also supports its position, and that's why it has banned Gaza-bound ships from leaving its ports.

Joanna Kakissis reporting.

The Dow was up 170 points.

This is NPR.

Builders began work on fewer projects in May, the Commerce Department saying construction spending slipped 0.6%, largely because of a big drop in government projects. Danielle Karson reports the money spent on new construction is at the lowest level in more than 10 years.

Spending in private building jobs and government projects such as new schools fell to just under 758 billion dollars, about half of the 1.5-trillion-dollar level that's considered healthy. But Patrick Newport, an economist²¹ with IHS Global Insight, says with the construction sector²² scraping bottom, it has no where to go, but up.

"We have a population that grows by three million a year. People have to live somewhere. So at some point, we will need to start putting up more homes."

But that won't be for a while. Builders have been struggling to keep their heads above water since the housing bust²³. They're competing with a market overflowing²⁴ with more than three million cheaper existing homes. For NPR News, I'm Danielle Karson in Washington.

The Michigan ban preventing universities from using race and gender²⁵ in considering which students to admit has been struck down. In a 2-1 decision today, a federal appeals court found the voter-approved Proposal 2 was unconstitutional because it says it burdens minorities. The law had forced many schools including the University of Michigan to change their admissions policies, which had given minorities preferential treatment.

In a long-awaited civil ceremony, Monaco's Prince Albert II has wed¹³ South African former Olympic swimmer Charlene Wittstock. Grace Kelly, the late Hollywood legend, married Albert's father Prince Rainier in 1956. Celebrations of today's ceremony will continue into the weekend.

1 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

2 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。

3 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

4 housekeeper   

n.管理家务的主妇，女管家

参考例句：

• A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
• She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家，一家人吃得很省。

5 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

6 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

7 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

8 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

9 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

10 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

11 indictment   

n.起诉；诉状

参考例句：

• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。
• They issued an indictment against them.他们起诉了他们。

12 defendant   

n.被告；adj.处于被告地位的

参考例句：

• The judge rejected a bribe from the defendant's family.法官拒收被告家属的贿赂。
• The defendant was borne down by the weight of evidence.有力的证据使被告认输了。

13 wed   

v.娶，嫁，与…结婚

参考例句：

• The couple eventually wed after three year engagement.这对夫妇在订婚三年后终于结婚了。
• The prince was very determined to wed one of the king's daughters.王子下定决心要娶国王的其中一位女儿。

14 limbo   

n.地狱的边缘；监狱

参考例句：

• His life seemed stuck in limbo and he could not go forward and he could not go back.他的生活好像陷入了不知所措的境地，进退两难。
• I didn't know whether my family was alive or dead.I felt as if I was in limbo.我不知道家人是生是死，感觉自己茫然无措。

15 austere   

adj.艰苦的；朴素的，朴实无华的；严峻的

参考例句：

• His way of life is rather austere.他的生活方式相当简朴。
• The room was furnished in austere style.这间屋子的陈设都很简单朴素。

16 rein   

n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治

参考例句：

• The horse answered to the slightest pull on the rein.只要缰绳轻轻一拉,马就作出反应。
• He never drew rein for a moment till he reached the river.他一刻不停地一直跑到河边。

17 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 intercepted   

拦截( intercept的过去式和过去分词 )； 截住； 截击； 拦阻

参考例句：

• Reporters intercepted him as he tried to leave the hotel. 他正要离开旅馆，记者们把他拦截住了。
• Reporters intercepted him as he tried to leave by the rear entrance. 他想从后门溜走，记者把他截住了。

19 audacity   

n.大胆，卤莽，无礼

参考例句：

• He had the audacity to ask for an increase in salary.他竟然厚着脸皮要求增加薪水。
• He had the audacity to pick pockets in broad daylight.他竟敢在光天化日之下掏包。

20 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。

21 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

22 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

23 bust   

vt.打破；vi.爆裂；n.半身像；胸部

参考例句：

• I dropped my camera on the pavement and bust it. 我把照相机掉在人行道上摔坏了。
• She has worked up a lump of clay into a bust.她把一块黏土精心制作成一个半身像。

24 overflowing   

n. 溢出物,溢流 adj. 充沛的，充满的 动词overflow的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• The stands were overflowing with farm and sideline products. 集市上农副产品非常丰富。
• The milk is overflowing. 牛奶溢出来了。

25 gender   

n.（生理上的）性，（名词、代词等的）性

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns.法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。
• Women are sometimes denied opportunities solely because of their gender.妇女有时仅仅因为性别而无法获得种种机会。