VOA标准英语2010年-Obama Says He Will Not Rest Until Oil

President Barack Obama, standing¹ with Interior Secretary Ken² Salazar, center, and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, left, delivers remarks in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington following his closed meeting with his Cabinet and other senior administration officials on the ongoing³ effort to stop the BP oil spill, 14 May 2010

U.S. President Barack Obama is angrily blasting oil industry officials who he says are failing to accept blame for the massive oil spill into the Gulf⁴ of Mexico.  The president says all parties need to take responsibility, including the government.

 

President Obama says he is angry and frustrated⁵ by oil executives' response to the catastrophic spill, after a BP oil rig blew up last month off the Louisiana coast.

In the White House Rose Garden, the president told reporters the finger-pointing needs to stop.

"I did not appreciate what I considered to be a ridiculous spectacle during the congressional hearings into this matter," said Obama.  "You had executives of BP and Transocean and Halliburton falling over each other to point the finger of blame at somebody else.  The American people could not have been impressed with that display, and I certainly was not."

Mr. Obama said some of the blame extends into his own administration.  He said he will force government regulators to make it tougher for oil companies to get drilling permits.

"For too long, for a decade or more, there has been a cozy⁶ relationship between the oil companies and the federal agency that permits them to drill," he added.  "It seems as if permits were too often issued based on little more than assurances of safety from the oil companies.  That cannot and will not happen anymore."

As the president spoke⁷, robots at the bottom of the Gulf tried to move a tube into the pipe that has pumped millions of liters of oil into the water.  BP said it hoped to know within hours whether the tube had successfully diverted the oil to a tanker⁸ at the surface.

Mr. Obama admitted that there is uncertainty⁹ about exactly how much oil is being spilled.  He said government efforts have been geared toward the possibility of a "catastrophic event."

The president said the system "failed and failed badly," and everyone involved bears the responsibility for fixing it.

"The oil companies share it; the manufacturers of this equipment share it; the agencies in the federal government in charge of oversight¹⁰ share that responsibility," he added.  "I will not tolerate more finger pointing or irresponsibility."

Mr. Obama called on Congress to quickly pass legislation to spend more money to clean up the spill, and to provide unemployment assistance and job training to people affected¹¹ by the crisis.

After the spill, the president asked Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to reform the government agency that oversees¹² oil drilling.  Salazar said this week the part of the agency which permits oil and gas drilling and collects royalties¹³ will be separated from the part which inspects the safety of oil rigs.

Mr. Obama said he has enacted¹⁴ other reforms, including re-examining the environmental procedures for oil and gas exploration and development.
 

1 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

2 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

3 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

4 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

5 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 cozy   

adj.亲如手足的，密切的，暖和舒服的

参考例句：

• I like blankets because they are cozy.我喜欢毛毯，因为他们是舒适的。
• We spent a cozy evening chatting by the fire.我们在炉火旁聊天度过了一个舒适的晚上。

7 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。

8 tanker   

n.油轮

参考例句：

• The tanker took on 200,000 barrels of crude oil.油轮装载了二十万桶原油。
• Heavy seas had pounded the tanker into three parts.汹涌的巨浪把油轮撞成三载。

9 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

10 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

11 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

12 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

13 royalties   

特许权使用费

参考例句：

• I lived on about £3,000 a year from the royalties on my book. 我靠着写书得来的每年约3，000英镑的版税生活。 来自辞典例句
• Payments shall generally be made in the form of royalties. 一般应采取提成方式支付。 来自经济法规部分

14 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