VOA标准英语2009年-Obama Campaigns For Economic Package

U.S. President Barack Obama is stepping up his campaign for passage of the massive economic stimulus¹ plan now making its way through Congress. Mr. Obama is taking to the road and the airwaves.
　
President Obama delivers his weekly address, 07 Feb 2009

The president is taking the case for the stimulus plan directly to the American people.

He has scheduled his first White House news conference for Monday night. Before and after the meeting with reporters, he is traveling to states hard hit by the economic recession, to take questions from the public.

Those states are Indiana, which he will visit early Monday, and Florida, where he will attend a town meeting on Tuesday.

Both are experiencing high levels of unemployment and, in the case of Florida, one of the highest home foreclosure rates in the nation.

They provide the perfect backdrop to underscore the message President Obama put forward in his Saturday radio address:

"The time for action is now," said President Obama. "Because if we don't move swiftly to put this plan in motion, our economic crisis could become a national catastrophe³."

Mr. Obama has been calling for a bipartisan approach to the problem. But, in recent days, his tone has gotten sharper. Faced with scant⁴ Republican support for the legislation now before Congress, the president is pointing to what he considers to be the failed policies of the past.

"We can't expect relief from the tired old theories that, in eight short years, doubled the national debt, threw our economy into a tailspin, and led us into this mess in the first place," said Mr. Obama.

The Senate could vote on its $827-billion version of the stimulus package by Tuesday. Then starts the difficult task of reconciling that bill with the earlier version passed by the House of Representatives.

Republicans refused to back the original House bill and indicate they are not about to change their minds.

Congressman⁵ Mike Pence of Indiana told NBC's Meet the Press Sunday that the $819-billion House package includes too much government spending and will explode the national debt.

"With all due respect to the President of the United States, the ideas, the worn out ideas that the American people are tired of is runaway⁶ government spending," said Mike Pence.

Pence was joined on NBC by Congressman Barney Frank of Massachusetts - the Democrat⁷ who chairs the House Financial Services. He said the American people voted for Democrats⁸ in Congress and the White House because they want change, and a new approach to the economy.

"We had an election last year, which had pretty decisive results in the White House, the Senate and the House," said Barney Frank. "And it did say that public spending for improved infrastructure⁹, to keep bridges from crumbling¹⁰, to keep cops [police] and firefighters working, that that is a good thing."

President Obama has said he would like to see a bill clear Congress before next weekend, when lawmakers are scheduled to leave Washington for a holiday recess².

1 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。

2 recess   

n.短期休息，壁凹（墙上装架子，柜子等凹处）

参考例句：

• The chairman of the meeting announced a ten-minute recess.会议主席宣布休会10分钟。
• Parliament was hastily recalled from recess.休会的议员被匆匆召回开会。

3 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

4 scant   

adj.不充分的，不足的；v.减缩，限制，忽略

参考例句：

• Don't scant the butter when you make a cake.做糕饼时不要吝惜奶油。
• Many mothers pay scant attention to their own needs when their children are small.孩子们小的时候，许多母亲都忽视自己的需求。

5 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。

6 runaway   

n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的

参考例句：

• The police have not found the runaway to date.警察迄今没抓到逃犯。
• He was praised for bringing up the runaway horse.他勒住了脱缰之马受到了表扬。

7 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。

8 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》

9 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

10 crumbling   

adj.摇摇欲坠的

参考例句：

• an old house with crumbling plaster and a leaking roof 一所灰泥剥落、屋顶漏水的老房子
• The boat was tied up alongside a crumbling limestone jetty. 这条船停泊在一个摇摇欲坠的石灰岩码头边。