2007年VOA标准英语-Key Republican Senator Calls on Bush to Begin T

By Deborah Tate
Capitol Hill
23 August 2007

An influential¹ U.S. Senate Republican says President Bush should announce an initial withdrawal² of troops from Iraq on September 15. Senator John Warner of Virginia made his comments to reporters Thursday, just days after visiting Iraq. VOA's Deborah Tate reports from Capitol Hill.

Senator John Warner, 23 Aug 2007

Senator Warner, a member and former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, says he is recommending that President Bush announce the beginning of a troop withdrawal from Iraq on September 15 as a way to press the Iraqi government into taking steps toward political reconciliation³.

"Take into consideration the need to send a sharp and clear message throughout the region, to the United States, and one that people can understand; I think [there is] no clearer form of that than for the president to announce on the 15th, that in consultation⁴ with senior military commanders, he has decided⁵ to initiate⁶ the first step in a withdrawal of our forces," said Senator Warner.

Warner says it would be up to the president to decide how many troops to redeploy, but suggested of the more than 160,000 troops in Iraq that 5,000 could be withdrawn⁷ and return home by Christmas Day of this year.

The senator says he is not advocating a rapid troop withdrawal, and noted⁸ that he previously⁹ has voted against timetables for withdrawals¹⁰.

But he said the time has come to show that the United States is serious when officials, including President Bush, say the U.S. commitment in Iraq is not open-ended.

Speaking in Crawford, Texas, where President Bush is vacationing, White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe responded to Warner's comments saying Mr. Bush would wait to receive a progress report from the top U.S. commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker in mid-September. The congress will also be briefed on the report. Johndroe says he does not believe the president feels any differently about setting a specific timetable for withdrawal, having previously said that that would embolden¹¹ the enemy.

The comments from Senator Warner came just hours after the release of a U.S. intelligence estimate that predicted political progress in Iraq would remain elusive¹² over the next year, and that the position of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government would become more precarious¹³

Senator Warner says he agrees with the assessment¹⁴. He says U.S. troops have made progress in boosting security in Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq. But he says Iraqi leaders have not made good on their commitment:

"I really firmly believe that the Iraqi government under the leadership of Prime Minister Maliki has let our troops down," he said.

But Warner would not go as far as the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senator Carl Levin of Michigan, who called on the Iraqi parliament to oust¹⁵ Prime Minister Maliki and his cabinet. Warner said that is a decision for the Iraqi people to make, consistent with their constitution.

1 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

2 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。

3 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

4 consultation   

n.咨询；商量；商议；会议

参考例句：

• The company has promised wide consultation on its expansion plans.该公司允诺就其扩展计划广泛征求意见。
• The scheme was developed in close consultation with the local community.该计划是在同当地社区密切磋商中逐渐形成的。

5 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。

6 initiate   

vt.开始，创始，发动；启蒙，使入门；引入

参考例句：

• A language teacher should initiate pupils into the elements of grammar.语言老师应该把基本语法教给学生。
• They wanted to initiate a discussion on economics.他们想启动一次经济学讨论。

7 withdrawn   

vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出

参考例句：

• Our force has been withdrawn from the danger area.我们的军队已从危险地区撤出。
• All foreign troops should be withdrawn to their own countries.一切外国军队都应撤回本国去。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

10 withdrawals   

n.收回，取回，撤回( withdrawal的名词复数 )；撤退，撤走；收回[取回，撤回，撤退，撤走]的实例；推出（组织），提走（存款），戒除毒瘾，对说过的话收回，孤僻

参考例句：

• He has made several withdrawals from his bank account. 他从银行账户上提了几次款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It is not the bank's policy to deduct interest on withdrawals. 提款需扣除利息这并非是本银行的政策。 来自辞典例句

11 embolden   

v.给…壮胆，鼓励

参考例句：

• Emboldened by the wine,he went over to introduce himself to her.他借酒壮胆，走上前去向她作自我介绍。
• The Prime Minister was steadily emboldened by the discovery that he faced no opposition.发现自己并未遭到反对，首相渐渐有了信心。

12 elusive   

adj.难以表达(捉摸)的；令人困惑的；逃避的

参考例句：

• Try to catch the elusive charm of the original in translation.翻译时设法把握住原文中难以捉摸的风韵。
• Interpol have searched all the corners of the earth for the elusive hijackers.国际刑警组织已在世界各地搜查在逃的飞机劫持者。

13 precarious   

adj.不安定的，靠不住的；根据不足的

参考例句：

• Our financial situation had become precarious.我们的财务状况已变得不稳定了。
• He earned a precarious living as an artist.作为一个艺术家，他过得是朝不保夕的生活。

14 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？

15 oust   

vt.剥夺，取代，驱逐

参考例句：

• The committee wanted to oust him from the union.委员会想把他从工会中驱逐出去。
• The leaders have been ousted from power by nationalists.这些领导人被民族主义者赶下了台。