VOA标准英语2010年-Congressional Leaders React to Preside

Congressional leaders have had mixed reactions to President Barack Obama's first State of the Union speech.  A number of Democratic lawmakers said the president's speech was hopeful and upbeat, while some Republicans accused the president of  looking backwards¹ and blaming his predecessor² for the country's problems.

President Obama's first State of the Union address came at a time when his Democratic Party is still reeling from a stinging defeat last week for a U.S. Senate seat in the heavily Democratic state, Massachusetts.  Losing that seat in the Senate has hurt their chances of passing sweeping³ health care reform and unleashed⁴ a wave of anxiety ahead of congressional elections this November.

The president referred directly to last week's political setback⁵, acknowledging that voters have a right to be angry.  But he told his fellow Democrats⁶ that they still have large majorities in both houses of Congress, and that they need to govern, instead of "running for the hills [retreating]."  He called on both Democrats and Republicans to overcome their bitter partisan⁷ divisions and work together to pass legislation to solve problems.

"What frustrates⁸ the American people is a Washington where every day is election day," he said.  "We cannot wage a perpetual campaign where the only goal is to see who can get the most embarrassing headlines about the other side.  A belief 'if you lose, I win.'"

Republican Senator Bob Corker told VOA that the president's tone was cordial, but that the speech lacked specifics on ways to reach out to work with Republicans.

"I had hoped for more," said Corker.  "Certainly the tone was nice, but it just did not seem to me that on the issue of policies it just did not seem to me he really learned a great deal in the last couple of week.

Republican Senator Jon Kyl described the speech as too partisan, saying it sounded like a campaign speech instead of a State of the Union speech.  Kyl said the president was still blaming former President George Bush for the country's problems, even though he did not mention him by name.

"After more than a year, take ownership of the problems you have," he said.  "You campaigned for president to solve these problems, so stop complaining about the mess that you inherited."

Democrats, on the other hand, praised the president for being hopeful and for focusing on jobs - the top issue for most voters.  Democratic Senator Mary Landrieu told VOA she did not think it was a partisan political speech at all.

"The president was upbeat.  He deserves a lot of credit.  I was particularly happy to hear his focus," said Landreiu.  "At least 15 times mentioned small business, "main street", helping⁹ middle class families, jobs.  I think that really is what we need to be focused on.

President Obama got the most applause from opposition¹⁰ Republicans when he said the number-one focus in the coming year would be on creating jobs and giving a boost to small businesses.  But he got more applause from the Democratic side of the aisle¹¹ than the Republican side when he called for Congress to pass a jobs creation bill and get it to his desk as quickly as possible.

 

1 backwards   

adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地

参考例句：

• He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
• All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。

2 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

3 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

4 unleashed   

v.把（感情、力量等）释放出来，发泄( unleash的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The government's proposals unleashed a storm of protest in the press. 政府的提案引发了新闻界的抗议浪潮。
• The full force of his rage was unleashed against me. 他把所有的怒气都发泄在我身上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 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。

6 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》

7 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。

8 frustrates   

v.使不成功( frustrate的第三人称单数 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• What frustrates him is that there's too little money to spend on the project. 使他懊恼的是，可用于这个项目的资金太少。
• His trouble is that he frustrates much easily. 他的毛病是很容易泄气。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

10 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

11 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。