2006年VOA标准英语-Contentious Hearings Expected for US Supre

By Deborah Tate
Capitol Hill
06 January 2006
 
In Washington, the Senate Judiciary Committee begins hearings Monday into the nomination¹ of Appeals Court Judge Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme² Court. VOA's Deborah Tate has a preview of what are expected to be contentious⁴ confirmation⁵ proceedings⁶.

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Republicans and Democrats⁸ alike on the Judiciary Committee agree that Judge Alito likely will face more intense questioning than Chief Justice John Roberts did during his confirmation hearings last year.

 
John Cornyn
(file photo)
 
  

"There is more at stake in this nomination," said Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, in a conference call to reporters. He notes that the politically conservative Chief Justice Roberts replaced another conservative, Chief Justice Rehnquist. But Judge Alito, another conservative, if confirmed, would succeed the more centrist Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

Justice O'Connor has often cast the deciding vote in 5-4 rulings on the deeply divided court, sometimes siding with the more liberal justices, and other times voting with the more conservative members of the bench.
 

Samuel Alito
(file photo)   
  
So Judge Alito's presence on the bench could shift the balance of the court. That has Senate Democrats worried, and they are vowing⁹ to question the nominee¹⁰ aggressively.

Democrats have expressed concern about Judge Alito's record on a number of issues, but particularly about documents he helped draft as a lawyer in the Reagan administration that suggest support for a powerful executive branch of government.

In one case, for example, he argued that the attorney general, the nation's top law enforcement official, deserves immunity¹¹ from prosecution¹² when acting¹³ in the name of national security, even if those actions involve the illegal wiretapping of U.S. citizens.

Some lawmakers predict the issue could dominate the hearings, which come in the wake of revelations that President Bush authorized¹⁴ a secret National Security Agency program to bypass courts and eavesdrop¹⁵ on the overseas phone calls of U.S. citizens with suspected ties to terrorists.

Senator Russ Feingold, a Wisconsin Democrat⁷, spoke¹⁶ to reporters in a conference call.

"There is no question that the question of executive powers in time of war in the context of the terrorist threat will be central to the Alito hearing," he said. "I would not be surprised if it were one of the most important topics."

Some Democrats are already questioning Judge Alito's commitment to protecting civil liberties by checking executive power.
 

Ted³ Kennedy   
  
"We have to ask ourselves, is there any limit, any limit on executive authority and power that this nominee will recognize, in terms of the limits of constitutional authority," asked Senator Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts.

The balance between executive power and civil liberties is also a concern to many Republicans. The Republican chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, says he will question Judge Alito about the Bush administration's domestic surveillance program. The Senator plans to hold hearings about the program in coming weeks.

Other issues expected to be raised at Judge Alito's hearings include the nominee's record on civil rights and abortion¹⁷.

Democrats are concerned about Judge Alito's conservative approach to voting rights and affirmative action. They also fear he would try to undermine abortion rights in the United States, citing a 1985 memorandum¹⁸ he wrote in which he expressed his opposition¹⁹ to the 1975 Supreme Court ruling known as Roe²⁰ v. Wade²¹, which legalized the procedure.

Senator Specter, a supporter of abortion rights, says Judge Alito sought to assure him that his personal views on abortion would not affect his judicial²² decisions.

"With respect to his personal views on a woman's right to choose, he says that is not a matter to be considered in the deliberation on a constitutional issue of a woman's right to choose, that a judicial role is entirely²³ different," he said.
 

Charles Schumer
(file photo)   
  
Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat, is urging Judge Alito to fully²⁴ explain his views on abortion and other contentious issues, and issued a warning if he does not.

"If Judge Alito refuses to answer these questions, I believe it will be extremely difficult to vote for him," he said. "Indeed, I believe, it could jeopardize²⁵ his nomination."

But Judge Alito's supports believe he will be confirmed by the end of the month and are dismissing critics who argue the nominee's views are too extreme.

"The fact is that Judge Alito's record demonstrates that he is solidly within the judicial mainstream²⁶ of this country," said Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas.

Supporters say Judge Alito is well-qualified to serve on the high court, and note that the nominee received the American Bar Association's top rating.

1 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

2 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

3 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

4 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

5 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

6 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

7 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

8 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》

9 vowing   

起誓，发誓（vow的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild its collapsed bridge. 布什总统承诺将帮助明尼阿波利斯重建坍塌的大桥。
• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild this collapse bridge. 布什总统发誓要帮助明尼阿波利斯重建起这座坍塌的桥梁。

10 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

11 immunity   

n.优惠；免除；豁免，豁免权

参考例句：

• The law gives public schools immunity from taxation.法律免除公立学校的纳税义务。
• He claims diplomatic immunity to avoid being arrested.他要求外交豁免以便避免被捕。

12 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

13 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

14 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

15 eavesdrop   

v.偷听，倾听

参考例句：

• He ensconced himself in the closet in order to eavesdrop.他藏在壁橱里，以便偷听。
• It is not polite to eavesdrop on the conversation of other people.偷听他人说话是很不礼貌的。

16 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。

17 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

18 memorandum   

n.备忘录，便笺

参考例句：

• The memorandum was dated 23 August,2008.备忘录上注明的日期是2008年8月23日。
• The Secretary notes down the date of the meeting in her memorandum book.秘书把会议日期都写在记事本上。

19 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

20 roe   

n.鱼卵；獐鹿

参考例句：

• We will serve smoked cod's roe at the dinner.宴会上我们将上一道熏鳕鱼子。
• I'll scramble some eggs with roe?我用鱼籽炒几个鸡蛋好吗？

21 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

22 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

23 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

24 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。

25 jeopardize   

vt.危及，损害

参考例句：

• Overworking can jeopardize your health.工作过量可能会危及你的健康。
• If you are rude to the boss it may jeopardize your chances of success.如果你对上司无礼，那就可能断送你成功的机会。

26 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。