2006年VOA标准英语-World Takes Note of US Vote With Focus on Iraq

By Sonja Pace
London
08 November 2006

The final tally¹ is not yet in with the vote outcome for the U.S. Senate still too close to call, but Democrats² have won a majority in the House of Representatives in what is widely seen as a punishing vote for President Bush and his policy on Iraq. 

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The world is still digesting the news, but as expected the U.S. elections made front-page headlines around the world.

"America's damning verdict on Bush," is how Britain's Independent newspaper, described the outcome, adding that voters had punished the president for Iraq.

These elections were largely seen as a vote for or against Mr. Bush and his Iraq policy.

In Iraq, U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad sought to reassure⁴ Iraqis that American policy would not change drastically. He said President Bush is the architect of U.S. foreign policy and sees success in Iraq as imperative⁵ to U.S. national interests.

On the streets of Baghdad people gathered around newspaper stands to read the latest poll results and peace and security seemed uppermost in their minds.

"We hope the Democrats will be kind to our people and understand our problems," said one woman. One man chimed in - "the Democrats are better than Bush's people [the Republicans], adding "we want security and peace in our country."

In northern Iraq, VOA's Benjamin Sand described the mood as "wait and see."

"Here in northern Iraq most people who have been following the election - and this is both local Iraqis and Americans," said Sand. "Very few people are willing to talk about what the Democrats' gains could mean for the country. I've spoken to several Kurdish politicians who say there are concerns the Democrats could push for a reduction in foreign aid or security operations in Iraq. Many U.S. officials here say they don't expect any immediate⁶ changes in policy, but they admit no one knows for certain exactly what is coming next."

The war in Iraq and the continuing Israeli-Palestinian violence have heightened anti-American sentiments in much of the Middle East.

In Cairo, Professor Hassan Nafae, head of the Political Science Department at Cairo University, says the election outcome shows the American people want change.

"I think this is a cry to stop the war in Iraq, to have an exit strategy, I think the Democrats will push towards the elaboration of an exit strategy," noted⁷ Professor Nafae. "This is how I understand the results of the elections."

In Asia, Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe became the first foreign leader to issue an official reaction to the election outcome.

Mr. Abe said his government would not change its Iraq policy. Japan supported the invasion of Iraq and early on sent troops to help with reconstruction⁸.

1 tally   

n.计数器，记分，一致，测量；vt.计算，记录，使一致；vi.计算，记分，一致

参考例句：

• Don't forget to keep a careful tally of what you spend.别忘了仔细记下你的开支账目。
• The facts mentioned in the report tally to every detail.报告中所提到的事实都丝毫不差。

2 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》

3 pedestrians   

n.步行者( pedestrian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Several pedestrians had come to grief on the icy pavement. 几个行人在结冰的人行道上滑倒了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Pedestrians keep to the sidewalk [footpath]! 行人走便道。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。

5 imperative   

n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的

参考例句：

• He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。
• The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

8 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。