2007年VOA标准英语-Bush Prevails in Political Showdown Over Iraq

By Jim Malone
Washington
25 May 2007

President Bush prevailed in his first showdown with the Democratic-controlled Congress over funding for the Iraq war. But as VOA National correspondent Jim Malone reports, Democrats¹ and a large number of congressional Republicans believe the pressure to change course in Iraq will only grow in the months ahead.

Geroge Bush, 23 May 2007

Mr. Bush flexed² enough political strength to win passage of a funding bill for the war without the troop withdrawal³ deadlines that Democrats had insisted on for months.

[The president signed the bill into law Friday.]

"Failure in Iraq affects the security of this country and it is hard for some Americans to see that, I fully⁴ understand it," he said. "I see it clearly."

While the president may see the congressional funding vote as vindication⁵ of his strategy in Iraq, Democrats clearly have a different idea, even though they acknowledge they suffered a setback⁶ in their efforts to force a change in course on Iraq.

Democratic Congressman⁷ Rahm Emanuel of Illinois says his party will keep the pressure on the president for the next several months.

"The American people want a new direction to our Iraq policy that focuses on fighting terrorism and not policing a thousand-year civil war between Shia and Sunni," he said. "This summer will be very important here in Washington as Republicans will be consistently asked to take a vote on bringing an end to the current course in Iraq."

Mr. Bush relied on support from congressional Republicans to block Democratic attempts to set a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

But some senior Republican leaders are already cautioning that their patience is not without limits when it comes to the situation in Iraq.

Mitch McConnell of Kentucky is the Senate Republican leader. McConnell says a military assessment⁸ of the situation in Iraq expected in September will be crucial.

"I think the handwriting is on the wall that we are going in a different direction in the fall, and I expect the president to lead it," he said. "He himself has certainly indicated he is not happy with where we are and I think we are looking for a new direction in the fall."

Analysts¹⁰ say the Democrats suffered a political setback on this first skirmish over funding the Iraq war. But Tom DeFrank of the New York Daily News predicts it will not be the last confrontation¹¹.

"So I think the Democrats basically decided¹² this was the best they could get right now and I think it was interesting that the president was very careful and prudent¹³, I think, not to gloat, because I think this is a short term victory, but it is a battle that has just begun to be engaged," he said on VOA's Issues in the News program.

Anti-war activists¹⁴ within the Democratic Party are disappointed with the outcome of the funding bill and vow¹⁵ to keep the pressure on congressional Democrats in the months ahead.

But Newsweek magazine White House Bureau Chief Richard Wolffe says the president and his Republican allies successfully exploited divisions within the Democratic Party on the issue of a troop withdrawal deadline.

"People are very dissatisfied with the war across the board," he said. "They also want Congress to shape the direction of the war. But when it comes down to it, people, even Democrats, polls show that 50 percent of Democrats are not happy with cutting off funds for the troops."

The latest CBS News/New York Times poll found 76 percent of those asked believe the war in Iraq is going badly, up ten points from last month.

Jeffrey McCausland is a military expert at the U.S. Army War College in Pennsylvania. He says declining domestic support for the war will complicate¹⁶ the president's troop surge strategy in Iraq.

"Our adversaries¹⁷ fully understand problems that we have got with support for the war back home and elsewhere, and as a consequence, they may step up their efforts to try to do spectacular things that will further discourage the American public," he said.

The domestic debate over the war is expected to reach another milestone¹⁸ in September when U.S. military officials give their assessment of progress in Iraq.

Analyst⁹ Tom DeFrank says among those paying close attention will be congressional Republicans worried about their own political re-election prospects¹⁹ in 2008.

"Republican senators have said we are tired of hearing, give us another six months," he said. "This is the last one. So, I think we are half way through the last six month period that President Bush will get the benefit of the doubt politically on Iraq."

The 2008 presidential campaign also remains²⁰ closely intertwined with the Iraq debate. Democratic Senators and presidential contenders Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama both voted against the funding bill. Obama said the bill amounts to a blank check for the president to continue down what he called a disastrous²¹ path.

Republican Senator and presidential candidate John McCain supported the bill and criticized Clinton and Obama for embracing what he called the politics of surrender.

1 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》

2 flexed   

adj.[医]曲折的，屈曲v.屈曲( flex的过去式和过去分词 )；弯曲；（为准备大干而）显示实力；摩拳擦掌

参考例句：

• He stretched and flexed his knees to relax himself. 他伸屈膝关节使自己放松一下。 来自辞典例句
• He flexed his long stringy muscles manfully. 他孔武有力地弯起膀子，显露出细长条的肌肉。 来自辞典例句

3 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

4 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

5 vindication   

n.洗冤，证实

参考例句：

• There is much to be said in vindication of his claim.有很多理由可以提出来为他的要求作辩护。
• The result was a vindication of all our efforts.这一结果表明我们的一切努力是必要的。

6 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

7 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

8 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

9 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

10 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

11 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

12 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

13 prudent   

adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的

参考例句：

• A prudent traveller never disparages his own country.聪明的旅行者从不贬低自己的国家。
• You must school yourself to be modest and prudent.你要学会谦虚谨慎。

14 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 vow   

n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓

参考例句：

• My parents are under a vow to go to church every Sunday.我父母许愿，每星期日都去做礼拜。
• I am under a vow to drink no wine.我已立誓戒酒。

16 complicate   

vt.使复杂化，使混乱，使难懂

参考例句：

• There is no need to complicate matters.没有必要使问题复杂化。
• These events will greatly complicate the situation.这些事件将使局势变得极其复杂。

17 adversaries   

n.对手，敌手( adversary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• That would cause potential adversaries to recoil from a challenge. 这会迫使潜在的敌人在挑战面前退缩。 来自辞典例句
• Every adversaries are more comfortable with a predictable, coherent America. 就连敌人也会因有可以预料的，始终一致的美国而感到舒服得多。 来自辞典例句

18 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。

19 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

20 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

21 disastrous   

adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的

参考例句：

• The heavy rainstorm caused a disastrous flood.暴雨成灾。
• Her investment had disastrous consequences.She lost everything she owned.她的投资结果很惨，血本无归。