VOA常速英语2013--移民改革法案辩论分裂共和党人

 

Immigration Debate Divides Republicans移民改革法案辩论分裂共和党人

Supporters of immigration reform rally near the Capitol in Washington, hoping to convince lawmakers to act. House Republicans appear to be in no hurry, though, including Congressman¹ Steve King of Iowa.

移民改革的支持者们在华盛顿国会大厦附近集会希望能说服国会议员们采取行动。然而包括爱荷华州众议员史蒂夫·金在内的众议院共和党人似乎并不着急。

King recently sparked anger when he dismissed many young immigrants as drug smugglers in an interview with Newsmax TV. “For everyone who’s a valedictorian, there’s another 100 out there who weigh 130 pounds and they’ve got calves² the size of cantaloupes because they are hauling 75 pounds of marijuana across the desert,” he said.

在Newsmax一档电视采访节目中将许多年轻移民视为毒品走私犯后金最近引发了众怒。“每个人都是一名告别演说家,另外100人的体重达到130磅,而且他们的腿肚子都肿的哈密瓜般大小,因为他们带着75磅的大麻穿过沙漠,”他说道。

Among those condemning³ King was Republican Speaker of the House, John Boehner. “What he said does not reflect the values of the American people or the Republican Party. We all need to do our work in a constructive⁴, open and respectful way.”

共和党众议院议长约翰·博纳也谴责金。“他的言论不代表美国人民或共和党的价值观。我们都需要以一种建设性的、开放及尊重的方式开展我们的工作。”

The immigration debate has divided Republicans in Congress, especially over a path to citizenship⁵. Many conservatives see that as amnesty for those who entered the country illegally.

移民的辩论已经分裂国会的共和党人,尤其是在获得公民身份的途径问题上。许多保守派人士将那些非法进入这个国家的人视为大赦。

Carroll Doherty, with the Pew Research Center in Washington, said, “They look confused about which direction to head and even about some of the basic principles of their philosophy. Do they present a more moderate face on issues like gay marriage and immigration or not?”

华盛顿皮尤研究中心的卡罗尔·多尔蒂说道:“他们看起来对于哪个方向，甚至自己一些基本的信念原则感到困惑。他们是不是对待像是同性恋婚姻和移民问题也是一种更温和的态度?”

Moderate Republicans favor passing some version of immigration reform, said Republican strategist Ford⁶ O’Connell. “This is a signal to Hispanics, to Asians, to other minorities that we care about your plight⁷ because we understand that you are not going to listen to what we have to say on policy if you think we are going to deport⁸ your grandmother.”

共和党战略家福特·奥康奈尔表示温和的共和党人支持通过一些版本的移民改革。“这对于我们关心你们境况的西班牙裔,亚裔及其他少数民族是一个信号,因为如果你们认为我们要驱逐你奶奶的话，我们理解你们是不会听信政策的。”

House Republicans say they will not follow the Senate’s lead and pass a comprehensive bill. Their first priority is shoring up the U.S. border with Mexico.

众议院共和党人表示他们不会跟随参议院的领导通过一个全面的法案。他们的首要任务是巩固美国与墨西哥边境。

Despite the slow progress in the House, Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi remains⁹ upbeat. “I’m optimistic about it because it has to happen. We just cannot let this languish,” she said.

尽管众议院进展缓慢,民主党领袖南希·佩洛西仍然非常乐观。“我很乐观,因为这已经发生。我们只是不能让它停滞。”她说道。

Failing to reach out to minority voters could have enormous consequences for a Republican Party trying to change its image, said O’Connell.

未能触动少数选民可能对于共和党试图改变自己的形象造成巨大的后果, 奥康奈尔说道。

“That the Republicans are only concerned about white voters and they are not concerned about the rank and file voter, and I hate to tell people that if you kill immigration reform, in the long run you could wind up killing¹⁰ the Republican Party,” he said.

“共和党人只关注白人选民,他们不关心老百姓的选民,而且我讨厌告诉人们,如果你将移民改革赶下台,从长远看可能是赶共和党下台。”他说道。

The House resumes debate on immigration when lawmakers return to Washington next month.

议员们在下个月返回华盛顿后众议院会继续讨论移民问题。

1 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。

2 calves   

n.(calf的复数)笨拙的男子，腓；腿肚子( calf的名词复数 )；牛犊；腓；小腿肚v.生小牛( calve的第三人称单数 )；（冰川）崩解；生（小牛等），产（犊）；使（冰川）崩解

参考例句：

• a cow suckling her calves 给小牛吃奶的母牛
• The calves are grazed intensively during their first season. 小牛在生长的第一季里集中喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 constructive   

adj.建设的，建设性的

参考例句：

• We welcome constructive criticism.我们乐意接受有建设性的批评。
• He is beginning to deal with his anger in a constructive way.他开始用建设性的方法处理自己的怒气。

5 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

6 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

7 plight   

n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定

参考例句：

• The leader was much concerned over the plight of the refugees.那位领袖对难民的困境很担忧。
• She was in a most helpless plight.她真不知如何是好。

8 deport   

vt.驱逐出境

参考例句：

• We deport aliens who slip across our borders.我们把偷渡入境的外国人驱逐出境。
• More than 240 England football fans are being deported from Italy following riots last night.昨晚的骚乱发生后有240多名英格兰球迷被驱逐出意大利。

9 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。

10 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。