2006年VOA标准英语-Congressional Sex Scandal Reverberates in Washi

By Dan Robinson
Washington
03 October 2006

The controversy¹ over a former Republican congressman² who resigned amid revelations he sent sexually suggestive messages to male pages continues to reverberate³ in Washington and across the United States. President Bush called for a full investigation⁴, as Republicans in the House of Representatives try to limit political damage from the scandal.

With Republican leaders trying to conduct damage control, a new blow was delivered in the form of a call by a key conservative newspaper for House Speaker Dennis Hastert to resign.

A Washington Times editorial said Hastert was "either grossly negligent⁵ or deliberately⁶ looked the other way in hopes that a brewing⁷ scandal would simply blow away."

 
Rep. Mark Foley speaks at a news conference in Tallahassee, Florida (File photo)
Hastert has denied knowing that messages from former Florida Congressman Mark Foley, who resigned last week, were sexually suggestive or explicit⁸ and his spokesman rejected calls that he step down.

Speaking in California, President Bush said he was dismayed, shocked and disgusted by Foley's "unacceptable behavior" and urged a thorough and aggressive investigation. "I fully⁹ support [House] Speaker Hastert's call for an investigation by law enforcement into this matter. This investigation should be thorough and any violations¹⁰ should be prosecuted," he said.

The president went on to give a statement of support to House Speaker Hastert, saying he is sure the Republican lawmaker wants all the facts to come out.

The House Republican Majority Leader, Ohio Congressman John Boehner, reiterated¹¹ the leadership's position that it had no knowledge of the sexually explicit nature of the Internet messages sent by Foley.

 
Dennis Hastert, Oct. 2, 2006 
Had Speaker Hastert or anyone else known, Boehner said, they would have moved to expel Foley immediately and turn him over to authorities.

A Lousiana lawmaker, Representative Rodney Alexander, has said he first contacted House Republican leaders last year about Foley's activities.

And the head of the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee, Congressman Tom Reynolds, said he alerted Speaker Hastert in 2005 that Foley's messages had caused "some discomfort¹²" to a congressional page.

In a radio interview Tuesday, Hastert said he and others "confronted" Foley about his Internet e-mail contacts after receiving a complaint from the parents of a congressional page, and ordered him to stop.

As House Republicans attempt to limit further political damage five weeks before the November 7th congressional election, they face mounting calls for Speaker Hastert to step down.

Democrats¹³ cranked up the pressure, with House Democratic Leader, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, alleging¹⁴ that Republicans tried to cover up the Foley matter. "This is about everybody who had any knowledge of this member of Congress, doing something that is against the law and a Republican leadership, not just him [Speaker Hastert], protecting the political future of Foley at the expense of protecting children," she said.

Additional twists emerged late Tuesday, in a Florida news conference by the former lawmaker's attorney, David Roth, who confirmed Foley is homosexual and suffered from sexual abuse as a teenager.

Noting that the former lawmaker entered a substance abuse and mental health facility, he said Foley accepts responsibility, but unequivocally states that he never had or attempted to have sexual contact with a minor¹⁵.

Foley, the attorney added, does not blame what he called his totally inappropriate Internet messages on the fact that he was molested¹⁶ between the ages of 13 and 15 by a clergyman, but declined to identify the person or offer other details.

Asked why this information was being released now, Roth said it was part of Foley's efforts to recover from alcoholism and mental issues.

Former Congressman Foley's actions are the subject of an FBI. investigation of his electronic communications with congressional pages, teenagers who perform routine jobs for members of Congress.

1 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

2 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。

3 reverberate   

v.使回响，使反响

参考例句：

• The decision will reverberate and will jar the country.这项决定将引起反响并震撼这个国家。
• Echoes of cries of pain reverberate in my hear.痛苦呼喊的一遍遍的在我的心中回响。

4 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

5 negligent   

adj.疏忽的；玩忽的；粗心大意的

参考例句：

• The committee heard that he had been negligent in his duty.委员会听说他玩忽职守。
• If the government is proved negligent,compensation will be payable.如果证明是政府的疏忽，就应支付赔偿。

6 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

7 brewing   

n. 酿造, 一次酿造的量 动词brew的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• It was obvious that a big storm was brewing up. 很显然，一场暴风雨正在酝酿中。
• She set about brewing some herb tea. 她动手泡一些药茶。

8 explicit   

adj.详述的，明确的；坦率的；显然的

参考例句：

• She was quite explicit about why she left.她对自己离去的原因直言不讳。
• He avoids the explicit answer to us.他避免给我们明确的回答。

9 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。

10 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。

11 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

12 discomfort   

n.不舒服，不安，难过，困难，不方便

参考例句：

• One has to bear a little discomfort while travelling.旅行中总要忍受一点不便。
• She turned red with discomfort when the teacher spoke.老师讲话时她不好意思地红着脸。

13 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》

14 alleging   

断言，宣称，辩解( allege的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• His reputation was blemished by a newspaper article alleging he'd evaded his taxes. 由于报上一篇文章声称他曾逃税，他的名誉受到损害。
• This our Peeress declined as unnecessary, alleging that her cousin Thornhill's recommendation would be sufficient. 那位贵人不肯，还说不必，只要有她老表唐希尔保荐就够了。

15 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

16 molested   

v.骚扰( molest的过去式和过去分词 )；干扰；调戏；猥亵

参考例句：

• The bigger children in the neighborhood molested the younger ones. 邻居家的大孩子欺负小孩子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He molested children and was sent to jail. 他猥亵儿童，进了监狱。 来自《简明英汉词典》