VOA标准英语2013--在纽约市长选举前期的反彭博浪潮

 

An 'Anti-Bloomberg' Surges to Fore¹ in New York City Mayoral Election 在纽约市长选举前期的反彭博浪潮

NEW YORK  After 12 years of Michael Bloomberg, New York City is getting ready to elect a new mayor. Front-runner Bill de Blasio, a middle-class Democrat² now serving as the citys public advocate, could hardly be less like the billionaire Democrat-turned-Republican-turned-Independent Mayor Bloomberg.

In recent weeks, polls have found, support for de Blasio has surged to more than 40 percent of likely Democratic primary voters, putting him far ahead of the earlier front-runners, Christine Quinn, speaker of the city council, and former city comptroller Bill Thompson.

The second-highest elected official in the city, de Blasio has been dubbed³ the "Anti-Bloomberg." He's a liberal with progressive economic policies, and not especially sympathetic to Wall Street. At every campaign event, his message is the same: New Yorkers want a break from the Bloomberg years, when, he says, big business and the wealthy were catered⁴ to at the expense of ordinary New Yorkers.

Right now in New York, were living a tale of two cities, almost half of New Yorkers are living at or near the poverty line and the middle class is disappearing, as he put it at the last debate of the Democratic candidates.

In an interview with VOA, De Blasio praised Bloombergs policies on the environment and public health, but said that the pressing needs of most New Yorkers were neglected.

Ive also said we should tax the wealthy, and thats another big difference: I want to tax the wealthy to help our public schools, he said, referring to his plan for funding all-day pre-kindergarten and after-school programs. The plan would raise the marginal tax rate from about 3.9 percent to 4.4 percent on people whose annual income tops $500,000.

The candidates biracial family - his wife, poet Chirlane McCray, is African-American, and they have two teenagers - is another source of appeal, especially among black voters. Many appreciate De Blasio's sharp opposition⁵ to New Yorks stop-and-frisk policing practices - which a federal judge recently found unconstitutional and ordered reformed. Mayor Bloomberg has defended them as necessary for public safety, and the city has appealed.

Although most New Yorkers are Democrats⁶, the city has not had a Democratic mayor since 1994. The leading Republican in this years race is former Metropolitan⁷ Transportation Authority chief Joseph Lhota, whom Mayor Bloomberg reportedly plans to endorse⁸ if de Blasio is the Democratic candidate. But polls show less enthusiasm for electing a Republican this year.

Additional reporting/interview by Victoria Kupchinetsky; camera by Daniela Schrier and Sergey Gusev. 

1 fore   

adv.在前面；adj.先前的；在前部的；n.前部

参考例句：

• Your seat is in the fore part of the aircraft.你的座位在飞机的前部。
• I have the gift of fore knowledge.我能够未卜先知。

2 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。

3 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 catered   

提供饮食及服务( cater的过去式和过去分词 )； 满足需要，适合

参考例句：

• We catered for forty but only twenty came. 我们准备了40客饭菜，但只来了20个人。
• They catered for everyone regardless of social rank. 他们为所有人服务而不计较其社会地位。

5 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。

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 metropolitan   

adj.大城市的，大都会的

参考例句：

• Metropolitan buildings become taller than ever.大城市的建筑变得比以前更高。
• Metropolitan residents are used to fast rhythm.大都市的居民习惯于快节奏。

8 endorse   

vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意

参考例句：

• No one is foolish enough to endorse it.没有哪个人会傻得赞成它。
• I fully endorse your opinions on this subject.我完全拥护你对此课题的主张。