2007年VOA标准英语-Bush: 'Now Is the Time to Act'

By Bill Rodgers
Washington, DC
11 January 2007
 
Watch Rodgers' report

President Bush has announced he will send about 20,000 additional troops to Iraq to help break the cycle of violence in that country.  Mr. Bush made the announcement in a televised address to the nation Wednesday, in which he outlined a new strategy for winning the Iraq war -- while also taking responsibility for mistakes made so far in the conflict.  The new policy puts the president on a collision course with the Democratic majority in Congress and faces skepticism from an American public that has grown weary over the lack of progress in the war.  More from VOA's Bill Rodgers.

President Bush

Sending more troops to Iraq is the centerpiece of the new strategy.  The additional soldiers will be deployed³ to help Iraqi forces quell⁴ the sectarian and insurgent⁵ violence, primarily in Baghdad.   In his speech, Mr. Bush acknowledged previous efforts did not succeed.

"Our past efforts to secure Baghdad failed for two principal reasons: There were not enough Iraqi and American troops to secure neighborhoods that had been cleared of terrorists and insurgents⁶.  And there were too many restrictions⁷ on the troops we did have."

Suicide car bombings and other acts of violence have been escalating⁸ in Baghdad for months, leaving thousands of civilians⁹ dead. The bombing of a prominent Shi'ite mosque¹⁰ last year aggravated¹¹ sectarian violence between minority Sunnis and majority Shias.

President Bush said Wednesday the Iraqi government will deploy² its security forces across Baghdad, establishing checkpoints and going into neighborhoods dominated by insurgents.  He also made clear the U.S. troop increase will coincide with actions by the Shi'te-dominated government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to end sectarian violence.

"I have made it clear to the Prime Minister and Iraq's other leaders that America's commitment is not open-ended.  If the Iraqi government does not follow through on its promises, it will lose the support of the American people -- and it will lose the support of the Iraqi people," said the president.  "Now is the time to act."

A top priority will be to disband the militias¹² -- especially the Mahdi Army led by radical¹³ Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.  The cleric is a key political ally of Mr. Maliki. But the prime minister has said his government will not tolerate sectarian interference. 

Overall, Mr. Bush said prevailing¹⁴ in Iraq is part of the wider war against al-Qaida and other terrorist groups, which the United States must win.

But opposition¹⁵ Democrats¹⁶ are unconvinced Mr. Bush's Iraq strategy will work.  Senator Dick Durbin delivered the party's response to Mr. Bush. "Escalation¹⁷ of this war is not the change the American people called for in the last election.  Instead of a new direction, the president's plan moves the American commitment in Iraq in the wrong direction."

Earlier Wednesday, Congressional leaders from both parties met with President Bush to discuss the strategy.  Democrat¹ Nancy Pelosi, who is Speaker of the House of Representatives, pledged to hold a vote on the president's policy.  

"The American people have lost confidence in the president's policy," said the speaker.  "We're hopeful that tonight he will restore that confidence. We will give his proposal a fair hearing and we'll establish the ground truth of what is happening in Iraq and then we will vote on the president's proposal."

For their part, Republican Congressional leaders emerged from their meeting expressing support for the president. "I think the [Bush] administration has put together a good plan," said House Minority leader John Boehner. "It is our best shot at victory in Iraq.  And I think that is what the American people want and expect."

Opinion polls show most Americans disapprove¹⁸ of the way Mr. Bush has handled the Iraq war.  Wednesday's speech was aimed at changing their minds, and giving the policy another chance at achieving success.

1 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。

2 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

3 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

4 quell   

v.压制，平息，减轻

参考例句：

• Soldiers were sent in to quell the riots.士兵们被派去平息骚乱。
• The armed force had to be called out to quell violence.不得不出动军队来镇压暴力行动。

5 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

6 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

7 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

8 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

9 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

10 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

11 aggravated   

使恶化( aggravate的过去式和过去分词 )； 使更严重； 激怒； 使恼火

参考例句：

• If he aggravated me any more I shall hit him. 假如他再激怒我，我就要揍他。
• Far from relieving my cough, the medicine aggravated it. 这药非但不镇咳，反而使我咳嗽得更厉害。

12 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

13 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

14 prevailing   

adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的

参考例句：

• She wears a fashionable hair style prevailing in the city.她的发型是这个城市流行的款式。
• This reflects attitudes and values prevailing in society.这反映了社会上盛行的态度和价值观。

15 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。

16 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》

17 escalation   

n.扩大，增加

参考例句：

• The threat of nuclear escalation remains. 核升级的威胁仍旧存在。 来自辞典例句
• Escalation is thus an aspect of deterrence and of crisis management. 因此逐步升级是威慑和危机处理的一个方面。 来自辞典例句

18 disapprove   

v.不赞成，不同意，不批准

参考例句：

• I quite disapprove of his behaviour.我很不赞同他的行为。
• She wants to train for the theatre but her parents disapprove.她想训练自己做戏剧演员，但她的父母不赞成。