VOA标准英语2009年-Bipartisanship Proves Elusive in US Health

By Jim Malone
Washington
16 October 2009
 
President Obama (file photo)
President Barack Obama and his Democratic allies in the U.S. Congress moved closer to enacting² a health care reform bill this week when a version of reform was approved by the influential³ Senate Finance Committee. So far, Democratic efforts on health care have attracted the support of only one Republican, and the prospects⁴ for winning over more appear remote. While bipartisanship seems elusive⁵ now, this was not always the case in Washington.

The political battle lines in the health care reform debate are stark⁶ and have come to symbolize⁷ the era of polarized politics in Washington.

But there was a time when bipartisan support for major pieces of legislation was not so far-fetched.

In the 1960s, for example, many Republicans were supportive of civil rights efforts in Congress when the Democratic Party was split between southern conservatives and northern liberals.

Some key Republican senators also voted to ratify⁸ the Panama Canal Treaty in 1978 despite criticism from conservatives that then President Jimmy Carter was weakening the U.S. by giving up control of the Panama Canal.

In 1973, lawmakers from both parties overwhelmingly supported passage of the Endangered Species Act. And in the mid-1990s, a number of Democrats⁹ embraced efforts at welfare reform first put forward by conservative Republicans.

But all of that seems long forgotten in the current Washington debate over health care reform.

President Obama has made health care his top domestic priority, and congressional Democrats are intent in following through on campaign promises they made in the last two elections.

 
Senator Harry¹⁰ Reid, 6 Oct 2009
Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid says the door remains¹¹ open to Republican support.

"Come join us," he said. "We want health care reform. We want to do it with you. We are going to do it with them or without them."

But so far the only Republican to walk through that door is Senator Olympia Snowe of Maine.

"And I happen to think that the consequences of inaction dictate¹² the urgency of Congress to take every opportunity to demonstrate its capacity to solve the monumental issues of our time," she said.

 
Senator Olympia Snowe (undated photo)
Snowe made it clear that her support for health care reform could change depending on what the final version of a health care bill looks like.

But the vast majority of Republicans oppose the various Democratic proposals as too much government interference in the economy.

"The Democrats' plans put us on a path to government-run health care," said Congressman¹³ John Boehner, who leads the Republican minority in the House of Representatives.

Polarized party politics reached a fever pitch during the presidency¹⁴ of Democrat¹ Bill Clinton during the 1990s, and continued through the eight years of former President George W. Bush.

In last year's presidential campaign, candidate Barack Obama talked about trying to change the political culture in Washington, but so far has had little success.

"Many Republicans, including some quite conservative ones, want to work with the other side because they are spending their careers here not just to kill things or destroy the other party, but to actually improve the lot of the country," said Norman Ornstein, a political analyst¹⁵ at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington. "But the internal pressure to avoid, as we say sleeping with the enemy, is so great that it keeps them from doing so."

The two parties remain sharply divided on what they see as the role of government, and that divide is playing out in the health care debate.

Republicans cite the example of former President Ronald Reagan, who sought to decrease the influence of the federal government on average Americans.

Democrats have long held a different view, says Georgetown University expert Stephen Wayne.

"Since the New Deal of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the Democrats have basically supported a heavier government involvement," he said. "If the economy was broke, it was up to the president to fix it."

Despite the political divide, analysts¹⁶ see the recent vote on health care reform in the Senate Finance Committee as significant.

"This is as close as Congress has come in 60 years of trying to do health care reform to getting a bill to the Senate floor and it is a big win for Senate Democrats and potentially, if it gets through the [Senate] floor and gets past the House [of Representatives], an enormous win for Barack Obama," said Martin Kady, who is with the political Web site Politico.

But even President Obama has been quick to point out that the battle over health care reform is far from over.

"We are now closer than ever before to passing health reform," he said. "But we are not there yet."

Competing versions of health care reform plans will have to be reconciled in both the Senate and House. Eventually a final plan will have to be produced that can win a majority of votes in the House and 60 of the 100 votes in the Senate in order to prevent Republicans from trying to kill it through parliamentary delaying tactics.

1 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。

2 enacting   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Generally these statutes apply only to wastes from reactors outside the enacting state. 总之，这些法令只适宜用在对付那些来自外州的核废料。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• In addition, the complexion of enacting standards for live working is described. 另外，介绍了带电作业标准的制订情况。

3 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。

4 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。

5 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。

6 stark   

adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地

参考例句：

• The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。
• He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。

7 symbolize   

vt.作为...的象征，用符号代表

参考例句：

• Easter eggs symbolize the renewal of life.复活蛋象征新生。
• Dolphins symbolize the breath of life.海豚象征着生命的气息。

8 ratify   

v.批准，认可，追认

参考例句：

• The heads of two governments met to ratify the peace treaty.两国政府首脑会晤批准和平条约。
• The agreement have to be ratify by the board.该协议必须由董事会批准。

9 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》

10 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

11 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。

12 dictate   

v.口授；(使)听写；指令，指示，命令

参考例句：

• It took him a long time to dictate this letter.口述这封信花了他很长时间。
• What right have you to dictate to others?你有什么资格向别人发号施令？

13 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。

14 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

15 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。

16 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。