2007年VOA标准英语-US Lawmakers Offer Measure Opposing Bush Plan t

By Deborah Tate
Washington
17 January 2007 

watch Leta Hong Fincher's report

From left, US Senators Hagel, Biden and Levin

A group of U.S. senators has drafted a resolution opposing President Bush's plan to increase troop levels in Iraq. Among them is an outspoken¹ Republican critic of the Iraq war, as VOA's Deborah Tate reports from Capitol Hill.

The non-binding measure expresses opposition² to President Bush's decision, announced last week, to send another 21,500 troops to Iraq.

It is sponsored by the Democratic chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senator Carl Levin of Michigan, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Joe Biden of Delaware, and Republican Senator Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, a long-time critic of the president's Iraq policy. "I will do everything I can to stop the president's policy as he outlined it on Wednesday night. I think it is dangerously irresponsible. To continue to put American lives in the middle of a clearly defined, tribal⁴, sectarian civil war is wrong," he said.

The resolution is aimed at forcing Republicans to take a stand on President Bush's handling of the war, which is unpopular with the American people.

Senator Biden, who, like Hagel, is considering running for president in 2008, says the resolution is aimed at pressuring Mr. Bush to change course in Iraq. "The more we -- we on a bipartisan basis -- showed the American people across the board that we do not want to go down this path of escalation⁵ the better our chances to get him to reconsider his approach," he said.

Biden says his Foreign Relations Committee will send the resolution to the Senate floor next week, after the President Bush's State of the Union address Tuesday night.

The House of Representatives is to consider simmilar meassures later this month.

Senator Hillary Clinton, a New York Democrat³ who is another likely contender for her party's nomination⁶ for president in 2008, says she, too, opposes a troop increase in Iraq and is proposing a cap on the number of U.S. soldiers there to the current 130-thousand.

Clinton, who just returned from a fact-finding trip to Iraq, said the United States should cut funds for the training and equipping of the Iraqi military if the country's Shi'ite leaders fail to give minority Sunnis a greater role in government. "I do not support cutting funding for American troops, but I do support cutting funding for Iraqi forces if the Iraqi government does not meet set conditions," she said.

At the White House, spokesman Tony Snow was critical of the Clinton proposal to cap the number of troops. "It binds⁷ the hands of the commander in chief and also the generals and frankly⁸ also the troops on the ground in terms of responding to situations and contingencies⁹ that may occur there. To tie one's hands in the time of war is a pretty extreme move," he said.

The White House does appear concerned about eroding¹⁰ congressional support for its Iraq strategy. President Bush and his national security adviser¹¹ Stephen Hadley invited skeptical¹² Republicans to the White House for private meetings about Iraq.

The White House received a blow last week, when one of its staunch allies, Republican Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, announced his opposition to a U.S. troop increase. Brownback, who visited Iraq recently, repeated his comments on the Senate floor Wednesday. "Sunni leaders blame everything on the Shi'ia, and the Shi'ia leaders likewise blame everything on the Sunnis. Kurdish leadership pointed¹³ out that the Sunnis and Shi'ia only meet when the Kurds call a meeting. All of this suggests that at the present time, the United States seems to care more for a peaceful Iraq than the Iraqis do. If that is the case, it is difficult to understand why more U.S. troops would make a difference," he said.

Still, the Bush administration does have its supporters. Senator Kit¹⁴ Bond, a Missouri Republican, is among them. "I happen to believe it is the best available option to support the Iraqis who have committed to end the insurgency¹⁵, to bring in the Sunnis into a government that would share in the oil revenues, and take responsibilities for ending the insurgency while our troops go after the external forces, the terrorists coming in from other countries joining the al-Qaida movement," he said.

Some Republican backers of the president's Iraq plan are considering introducing their own resolution expressing support for the strategy.

1 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

2 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。

3 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。

4 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

5 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

6 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。

7 binds   

v.约束( bind的第三人称单数 )；装订；捆绑；（用长布条）缠绕

参考例句：

• Frost binds the soil. 霜使土壤凝结。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Stones and cement binds strongly. 石头和水泥凝固得很牢。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

9 contingencies   

n.偶然发生的事故，意外事故( contingency的名词复数 )；以备万一

参考例句：

• We must consider all possible contingencies. 我们必须考虑一切可能发生的事。
• We must be prepared for all contingencies. 我们要作好各种准备，以防意外。 来自辞典例句

10 eroding   

侵蚀，腐蚀( erode的现在分词 )； 逐渐毁坏，削弱，损害

参考例句：

• The coast is slowly eroding. 海岸正慢慢地被侵蚀。
• Another new development is eroding the age-old stereotype of the male warrior. 另一个新现象是，久已形成的男人皆武士的形象正逐渐消失。

11 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

12 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

13 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

14 kit   

n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物

参考例句：

• The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
• The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。

15 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网