2007年VOA标准英语-US Senate Agrees to Debate Iraq Resolution

By Deborah Tate
Capitol Hill
14 March 2007

The U.S. Senate has voted to consider a Democratic Party-sponsored resolution to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq.  The 89 to 9 vote occurred after opposition³ Republicans blocked two previous attempts to debate the Iraq war, which public opinion polls show is unpopular with the American people.

 
US Capitol, Washington DC
Under the resolution being debated by senators, the United States would begin withdrawing U.S. troops four months after the measure's passage, with the goal of completing redeployment by March 31 of next year. 

The resolution says a limited number of U.S. forces could stay beyond that date to protect U.S. personnel, train and equip Iraqi forces and carry out counter-terrorism operations.

The Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Joe Biden, says it is time to start bringing troops home because the goals of the U.S. military mission authorized⁴ by Congress have been met.

 
Joseph Biden
"It was to take down Saddam Hussein if need be, it was to get rid of weapons of mass destruction that did not exist, and it was to get compliance⁵ to the U.N. resolutions," he said.  "Every one of those have been met.  Saddam is dead.  There were no weapons.  And Iraq is in compliance with the U.N.  So if you want to be literal about it, the mission no longer has the force of law."

Senator Ted¹ Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat² and long-time vocal⁶ critic of the Iraq war, said the time had come to end what he called a failed policy.

"It is time to change course," he said.  "Let the Iraqis step up to the plate and take responsibility for their own future and begin to redeploy our troops out of Iraq."

Opposition Republicans, after blocking two previous Democratic attempts to debate the war, agreed to allow debate this time.  But many Republicans made clear they would not support the resolution.

Senator John McCain of Arizona, who is seeking the Republican nomination⁷ for president next year, warned of dire⁸ consequences if U.S. troops begin withdrawing from Iraq.

 
Senator John McCain (R)
"If we walk away from Iraq now, we risk a failed state in the heart of the Middle East, a haven⁹ for international terrorists, an invitation to regional war in an economically vital area, and humanitarian¹⁰ disaster that could involve millions of people," he said.  "If we walk away from Iraq we will be back, possibly in the context of a wider war in the world's most volatile¹¹ region."

The Senate's top Republican, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, said the resolution is a clear statement of retreat, and its passage would be fatal to the U.S. mission in Iraq.

"This is the memo¹² that our enemies have been waiting for," he said.  "Osama bin¹³ Laden¹⁴ and his followers¹⁵ have repeatedly said that the United States does not have the stomach for a long fight with the terrorists.  Passage of the Reid joint¹⁶ resolution will be the first concrete sign since September 11, 2001 that he was right on target."

Republicans could use parliamentary procedures to block the measure from coming to a vote in the narrowly divided Senate.

The House is considering a similar version of the resolution.

1 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。

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 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。

4 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。

5 compliance   

n.顺从；服从；附和；屈从

参考例句：

• I was surprised by his compliance with these terms.我对他竟然依从了这些条件而感到吃惊。
• She gave up the idea in compliance with his desire.她顺从他的愿望而放弃自己的主意。

6 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

7 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。

8 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

9 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

10 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

11 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

12 memo   

n.照会，备忘录；便笺；通知书；规章

参考例句：

• Do you want me to send the memo out?您要我把这份备忘录分发出去吗？
• Can you type a memo for me?您能帮我打一份备忘录吗？

13 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

14 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

15 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

16 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。