2007年VOA标准英语-French President-Elect Sarkozy Calls for Econom

By Deborah Block
Washington
15 May 2007
 

Nicholas Sarkozy will become the new president of France on Wednesday (May 16th).   The conservative politician is calling for tax cuts, free-market reforms and stronger ties to the United States.  How will these proposed changes affect France and its allies?  VOA's Deborah Block reports.

Nicolas Sarkozy

Nicholas Sarkozy is a politician of contrasts.  He is a conservative on law and order who is known for being tough on crime.  He believes France should have a more liberal economy based on the American and British models.   Some people in France welcome his ideas, while others accuse him of being authoritarian¹ and ready to trade civil liberties for political gains. 

Robert Lieber is a professor of international studies at Georgetown University in Washington.  "He was elected on the basis that he would bring change to France,” he says. “I think there is some likelihood that he can be successful."

Sarkozy held several ministerial posts and was interior minister and finance minister under his predecessor², President Jacques Chirac.

Sarkozy says he wants to jump-start France's lagging economy by deregulating the labor³ market and creating more jobs. But that would weaken French labor protections.  He also wants to slash⁴ income taxes, overhaul⁵ the pension plan and reform the university system.

Like Jacques Chirac, Sarkozy says he would have kept France out of the Iraq war.  But he says he hopes to improve French-U.S. relations. He said in his victory speech that the U.S. could count on France's friendship.  President George W. Bush says despite their differences, he is looking forward to working with Sarkozy. 

Lieber thinks that, with Sarkozy in power, the U.S. and the wealthiest countries in Europe will all work better together.  "And I think what the U.S. will find is that it has partners in Britain, France and Germany who will make their views known when they don't agree with the United States, but always do so in a way that says, 'Look, at heart we're alliance partners, our values and interests and beliefs in security mean we have far more in common’.”

Sarkozy is the son of a Hungarian immigrant father and a French mother.  He says he wants to reform the immigration system with quotas⁶ to admit more skilled workers.  And while he has worked to ease tense relations with Muslims in France, but he also wants a crackdown on violence in Muslim communities.

"So a very interesting challenge for Sarkozy will be to deal with the immigrant community to try to avoid an excessive degree of alienation⁷, while carrying out plans to better integrate them in the life of French society and also to enforce French immigration laws," explains professor Lieber

Crucial to implementing⁸ Sarkozy's reforms are next month's legislative⁹ elections.  His right-wing UMP [Union for a Popular Movement] party has a large majority in both houses of parliament.  But that party must keep it that way if Sarkozy is to follow through on his ambitious reforms.

1 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。

2 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

3 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

4 slash   

vi.大幅度削减；vt.猛砍，尖锐抨击，大幅减少；n.猛砍，斜线，长切口，衣衩

参考例句：

• The shop plans to slash fur prices after Spring Festival.该店计划在春节之后把皮货降价。
• Don't slash your horse in that cruel way.不要那样残忍地鞭打你的马。

5 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

6 quotas   

（正式限定的）定量( quota的名词复数 )； 定额； 指标； 摊派

参考例句：

• In fulfilling the production quotas, John made rings round all his fellow workers. 约翰完成生产定额大大超过他的同事们。
• Quotas of the means of production are allocated by the higher administrative bodies to the lower ones. 物资指标按隶属关系分配。

7 alienation   

n.疏远；离间；异化

参考例句：

• The new policy resulted in the alienation of many voters.新政策导致许多选民疏远了。
• As almost every conceivable contact between human beings gets automated,the alienation index goes up.随着人与人之间几乎一切能想到的接触方式的自动化，感情疏远指数在不断上升。

8 implementing   

v.实现( implement的现在分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• -- Implementing a comprehensive drug control strategy. ――实行综合治理的禁毒战略。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• He was in no hurry about implementing his unshakable principle. 他并不急于实行他那不可动摇的原则。 来自辞典例句

9 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。