2006年VOA标准英语-US Senate Debates Iraq War, Democrats Call for

By Dan Robinson
07 September 2006

Lawmakers in the Senate have been holding a lengthy¹ debate on the war in Iraq, with majority Republicans supporting President Bush, and Democrats³ calling for the resignation of Defense⁴ Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. VOA's Dan Robinson reports from Capitol Hill where members of Congress also reacted to President Bush's latest remarks on terrorism and the issue of the treatment of terrorist suspects.

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Opposition⁶ Democrats had no illusions that they would get a vote on their resolution calling for the resignation of the man President Bush has relied upon at the Pentagon to manage the war in Iraq.

Their non-binding measure stated that the president's policy of staying the course in Iraq has made the United States less secure, reduced the readiness of the U.S. military, and burdened Americans with more than $300 billion in additional debt.

Since it was not directly relevant to a defense spending bill the Senate is considering, the resolution was certain to be struck down, never even advancing to a vote.

Republicans, such as Senator Ted⁵ Stevens, denounced Democrats for staging a political stunt⁷ designed to embarrass President Bush.

[President Bush] "does not deserve the opposition, I am sad to say in my opinion, on a purely⁸ political basis. Now there may be some over on this side of the aisle⁹ who have lost confidence in him, but this senator has not," he said. 

Charles Schumer

For their part, Democrats such as Senator Charles Schumer countered that the multi-hour debate was entirely¹⁰ appropriate. "Most Americans, Democrats, Independents, and Republicans, believe we need a new direction in Iraq and that is what this resolution personifies," he said.

Responses by other Republicans to Democrat² calls for Secretary Rumsfeld's departure were summed up by South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham.

"They [Democrats] are very united in defeatism, in their negatives attacks on the president, and in the process encouraging terrorists all around the world. Sending the signal that America is frustrated¹¹ and ready to quit. America is not ready to quit," he said.

The debate, which may soon be duplicated in the House, came as lawmakers reacted to President Bush's announcement that 14 key terrorist leaders in U.S. custody¹² have been transferred to the U.S. naval¹³ facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

The president has asked the Republican-led Congress to quickly approve legislation that would allow these and other terrorist suspects to be tried by military tribunals, possibly as early as next year.

House Republican leaders pledged to examine White House proposals regarding legislation, which would provide a roadmap for the Defense Department on tribunals.

All of this comes in the wake of last June's Supreme¹⁴ Court ruling saying military commissions were not authorized¹⁵ by U.S. law and counter to the Geneva Conventions.

House Minority leader Nancy Pelosi mixed criticism into her reaction to the president's announcement. "I am very pleased that the president has finally come around to adhering to the rule of law as proposed by the Supreme Court and has approached the Congress to enact¹⁶ legislation," she said.

But while Pelosi says she looks forward to working with Republicans on a bipartisan approach to legislation, she repeated her party's criticisms of the president, and said Democrats will "use every tool at their disposal" to press for Secretary Rumsfeld's resignation.

1 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。

2 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。

3 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》

4 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。

5 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。

6 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。

7 stunt   

n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长

参考例句：

• Lack of the right food may stunt growth.缺乏适当的食物会阻碍发育。
• Right up there is where the big stunt is taking place.那边将会有惊人的表演。

8 purely   

adv.纯粹地，完全地

参考例句：

• I helped him purely and simply out of friendship.我帮他纯粹是出于友情。
• This disproves the theory that children are purely imitative.这证明认为儿童只会单纯地模仿的理论是站不住脚的。

9 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

10 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。

11 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

13 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

14 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。

15 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。

16 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。