【英语时差8,16】民权法案

PASSING THE CIVIL RIGHTS ACT - on Today's Congressional Moment. When President John Kennedy was assassinated¹ in November of 1963, civil rights leaders were unsure if his support of the civil rights movement would live on with his successor, Lyndon Johnson. But on November 27, 1963, when Johnson addressed the Congress and the nation for the first time as President, he called for passage of the Civil Rights Act as a monument to the fallen Kennedy. LBJ Audio clip:"the ideas and the ideals which he so nobly represented, must and will be translated into effective action." (applause) (:15) The heart of the Civil Rights Act states that African Americans could no longer be excluded from restaurants, hotels or any other public facilities. While the House of Representatives passed the measure, it was the Senate that had many worried. In the past, Senate filibusters² had effectively killed nearly all civil rights legislation. But Johnson, well-versed in Congressional procedure, along with key Senate supporters such as Hubert Humphrey and Everett Dirksen, artfully drafted the bill to avoid referral to an unsympathetic committee, and encouraged civil rights leaders to mount a massive lobbying campaign on the Capitol. The strategy paid off, and in June the Senate voted to close debate. A few weeks later, it passed the most important piece of civil rights legislation in the nation's history, the Civil Rights Act. It was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on July 2, 1964, following one of the longest debates in Senate history. STANDARD CLOSE: This is Lee Hamilton. Congressional decisions impact all our lives. To find out more about how Congress works or to get involved in your government, visit the Center on Congress website at congress.indiana.edu.

1 assassinated   

v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 )；中伤；诋毁；破坏

参考例句：

• The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
• Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后，肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句

2 filibusters   

n.掠夺兵( filibuster的名词复数 )；暴兵；（用冗长的发言）阻挠议事的议员；会议妨碍行为v.阻碍或延宕国会或其他立法机构通过提案( filibuster的第三人称单数 )；掠夺

参考例句：

• This Republican leadership has waged 78 filibusters and we still have six months to go. 而这届参议院上台才一年半，共和党领导层已经应用了78次。 来自互联网
• Yes, there were filibusters in the past-most notably by segregationists trying to block civil rights legislation. 没错，过去也有使用阻挠立法手段的——尤其是种族隔离分子阻止民权法案使用过。 来自互联网