VOA标准英语2009年-Obama's Political Skills Put to the Test

The political rhetoric¹ is heating up in Washington as President Barack Obama increases pressure on Congress to pass a stimulus² bill that he believes will help turnaround the flagging U.S. economy. Mr. Obama's formidable political skills are being put to an early test.
　
President Barack Obama, accompanied by Economic Recovery Advisory³ Board Chair Paul Volcker, at the White House, 06 Feb 2009

In the early days of his new administration, Mr. Obama's emphasis was on bipartisanship, reaching out to Republicans in hopes of a broad approach on the economy.

But in recent days the tone has changed - more partisan⁴ and more reminiscent of last year's presidential campaign.

Mr. Obama told House Democrats⁵ that it was time Republicans remembered that Americans strongly signaled a desire for change last November.

"They did not vote for the false theories of the past and they did not vote for phony arguments and petty politics. They did not vote for the status quo, they sent us here to bring change. We owe it to them to deliver," he said.

But even some moderate Senate Democrats are holding back their support for the stimulus bill, hoping to trim some of the spending.

Republicans have been down in the dumps since the November election, and they have seized on the stimulus fight to re-energize their dispirited conservative base.
　
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (file photo)

"At some point, the taxpayers⁶ will have to pay all of this back, and they are worried," said Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Senate Republican leader. "Americans cannot afford a trillion dollar mistake, however well meaning the intent, and at this point that is what many of us think this bill would be," he said.

The latest unemployment figures seem to buttress⁷ the president's call for quick action to stem the bleeding.

In January, the U.S. lost the largest number of jobs in a single month since 1974, and economist⁸ Mark Zandi said there appears to be no end in sight.

"Everyone knew it was going to be bad, and it is. It's a little worse than anticipated. It just confirms the fear that things are unraveling," said Zandi.

Polls indicate the public is very worried about the economy, but will give the new president time to get his program enacted⁹.
　
Circuit City customers walk in and out of a store advertising¹⁰ major markdowns in San Jose, California, 26 Jan. 2009

"There is very high public approval of the president right now. That has to do less with what Obama is doing and more with the larger economic concerns out there in the country," said Stephen Farnsworth, an expert on the presidency¹¹ at George Mason University in Virginia. "A lot of people are very worried about the future and are very enthusiastic about Obama as a possibility for really taking the country in a different direction," he said.

Mr. Obama came into office on a wave of goodwill¹², with polls showing most Americans regard him as a strong leader, especially when it comes to dealing¹³ with the economy.

Author Mark Updegrove said it will be important for the new president to maintain that aura of leadership. He spoke¹⁴ on the C-SPAN public affairs network.

"I think first and foremost that character matters, and particularly during a time of crisis. The character of our leader can be extremely important in navigating¹⁵ the troubled waters that they face," he said.

Analyst¹⁶ Stephen Farnsworth said Mr. Obama is quickly finding out the differences between running a presidential campaign and governing the country.

"Passing a piece of legislation is a very different matter, and the Republicans have been successful in bringing up particular pieces of the stimulus bill to find areas where you can sow doubt in the utility of the whole measure. If you do not define your legislation, it will be defined by the opponents of the legislation," said Farnsworth.

Professor Farnsworth also has some advice for the president - there may be times when it pays to get tough with your opponents.

"I think that the most important thing to recognize about presidents is that you need to be feared. And one of the things that is unclear about Obama right now is what the price is for opposing Obama. It seems like there is not a really negative consequence for opposing the president, and if Obama is going to be successful, I think the Republicans are going to have to fear Obama more than they have so far," he said.
　
Tom Daschle on Capitol Hill in Washington on 08 Jan 2009

Mr. Obama has also been distracted by some vetting¹⁷ problems for some of his cabinet nominees¹⁸, most importantly the withdrawal¹⁹ of former Senator Tom Daschle to be the secretary for Health and Human Services.

Daschle has been a combination mentor²⁰ and confidant for the new president and his decision to withdraw over tax problems has left the administration without a leader in its push for health care reform.

Experts said some of these early troubles will be long forgotten if Mr. Obama manages to pass a stimulus plan soon.

1 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

2 stimulus   

n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物

参考例句：

• Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
• Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。

3 advisory   

adj.劝告的，忠告的，顾问的，提供咨询

参考例句：

• I have worked in an advisory capacity with many hospitals.我曾在多家医院做过顾问工作。
• He was appointed to the advisory committee last month.他上个月获任命为顾问委员会委员。

4 partisan   

adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒

参考例句：

• In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。
• The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

5 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》

6 taxpayers   

纳税人，纳税的机构( taxpayer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Finance for education comes from taxpayers. 教育经费来自纳税人。
• She was declaiming against the waste of the taxpayers' money. 她慷慨陈词猛烈抨击对纳税人金钱的浪费。

7 buttress   

n.支撑物；v.支持

参考例句：

• I don't think they have any buttress behind them.我认为他们背后没有什么支持力量。
• It was decided to buttress the crumbling walls.人们决定建造扶壁以支撑崩塌中的墙。

8 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

9 enacted   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• legislation enacted by parliament 由议会通过的法律
• Outside in the little lobby another scene was begin enacted. 外面的小休息室里又是另一番景象。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

10 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

11 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。

12 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。

13 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

14 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

15 navigating   

v.给（船舶、飞机等）引航，导航( navigate的现在分词 )；（从海上、空中等）横越；横渡；飞跃

参考例句：

• These can also be very useful when navigating time-based documents, such as video and audio. 它对于和时间有关的文档非常有用，比如视频和音频文档。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Vehicles slowed to a crawl on city roads, navigating slushy snow. 汽车在市区路上行驶缓慢，穿越泥泞的雪地。 来自互联网

16 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。

17 vetting   

n.数据检查[核对，核实]v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的现在分词 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• Scripts had to be submitted to Ministry of Information officials for vetting. 必须把脚本提交给信息部官员审查。 来自互联网
• Their purpose in clicking deeper into a site is one of vetting. 他们深入点击网站的目的是一种诊疗。 来自互联网

18 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

19 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。

20 mentor   

n.指导者，良师益友；v.指导

参考例句：

• He fed on the great ideas of his mentor.他以他导师的伟大思想为支撑。
• He had mentored scores of younger doctors.他指导过许多更年轻的医生。