2006年VOA标准英语-Bush Discusses Iraq With Former Cabinet Me

By Paula Wolfson
White House
05 January 2006

President Bush is reaching out beyond his usual circle of advisers¹ for suggestions on the way forward in Iraq.  He invited a group of former secretaries of state and defense² to the White House to get their views.

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President Bush, second from left, meets with present and former secretaries of state and defense in  Roosevelt Room at the White House 
  

The president sat at a long wooden table, surrounded by current and former top foreign policy and defense officials.

There were about a dozen in attendance, split evenly between members of past Republican and Democratic administrations dating back to the 1960s.

President Bush said he welcomed their suggestions on the way forward in Iraq.

"Not everybody around this table agreed with my decision to go into Iraq, and I fully³ understand that," said Mr. Bush.  "But these are good solid Americans, who understand that we have got to succeed now that we are there."

He said he is grateful for their ideas and promised to "take to heart" their advice.  But the president made clear he does not plan any major changes in his Iraq strategy.

"We have a dual⁴ track strategy for victory," he added,  "On the one hand, we will work to have a political process that says to all Iraqis: 'the future belongs to you.'  On the other hand, we will continue to work on the security situation there."

His guests were briefed on that strategy and the current situation on the ground in Iraq by top military commanders and the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Zalmay Khalilzad . Current Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld were also present to help update their predecessors⁵.

After the session, Harold Brown, who served as former President Jimmy Carter's secretary of defense in the 1970s, spoke⁶ with reporters.  He said the situation in Iraq is difficult, but there are signs of progress.

"My own belief is that the evolution of the political situation there over the next few months is going to be crucial to how it all turns out," he said.

Others attending the meeting included President Bush's first-term secretary of state, Colin Powell, and several former Clinton administration officials.  They left the White House quietly, and made no public comments after the session.

1 advisers   

顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• a member of the President's favoured circle of advisers 总统宠爱的顾问班子中的一员
• She withdrew to confer with her advisers before announcing a decision. 她先去请教顾问然后再宣布决定。

2 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。

3 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

4 dual   

adj.双的；二重的，二元的

参考例句：

• The people's Republic of China does not recognize dual nationality for any Chinese national.中华人民共和国不承认中国公民具有双重国籍。
• He has dual role as composer and conductor.他兼作曲家及指挥的双重身分。

5 predecessors   

n.前任( predecessor的名词复数 )；前辈；（被取代的）原有事物；前身

参考例句：

• The new government set about dismantling their predecessors' legislation. 新政府正着手废除其前任所制定的法律。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Will new plan be any more acceptable than its predecessors? 新计划比原先的计划更能令人满意吗？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。