在线英语听力室

VOA慢速英语 2008 1110b

时间:2008-12-11 05:18:14

搜索关注在线英语听力室公众号:tingroom,领取免费英语资料大礼包。

(单词翻译)

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember. Our subject this week is the election of two thousand eight.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:
 
Barack Obama in Chicago on Friday at his first meeting with reporters as president-elect

And this is Shep O’Neal. On January twentieth, Barack Obama will be inaugurated as the forty-fourth president of the United States.

He won fifty-three percent of the popular vote and far more of the electoral votes than he needed to become president. His decisive victory over John McCain brought down the last racial barrier in American politics. It also followed two presidential elections that were narrowly decided1.

Yet until a few years ago, almost no one outside of Illinois had ever heard of Barack Hussein Obama. The son of a black father from Kenya and a white mother from Kansas had a simple theme for his campaign for the White House. It was about change. And he came back to it in his acceptance speech Tuesday night.

BARACK OBAMA: "Because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America."

VOICE ONE:

Barack Obama is forty-seven years old. He was elected a United States senator from Illinois four years ago.

His campaign for the White House lasted twenty-one months. Unlike John McCain, he decided against public campaign financing. More than three million people donated to the Obama campaign, often in small amounts over the Internet. He raised more than six hundred million dollars, more money than any presidential candidate ever has.

His victory was built on an aggressive campaign in states that for many years have voted Republican for president. He won Virginia and Indiana -- two states that last voted for a Democrat2 in nineteen sixty-four.

VOICE TWO:

Population changes have helped the Democrats3 make gains in some states, including Virginia, in recent years. Still, many political observers say the Obama campaign organized the best operation they have ever seen.

Yet the first and possibly most important victory came in the Iowa caucuses4 in January. That was where he first defeated Senator Hillary Clinton and proved that a black candidate could appeal to white voters. More than ninety percent of Iowa’s population is white. He carried Iowa again in the general election on Tuesday, with fifty-four percent of the vote.

VOICE ONE:

An estimated one hundred thirty-five million Americans voted in the election. Final totals may not be known for several weeks, but experts said this year's turnout rate could be the highest since nineteen sixty. Almost sixty-three percent of the voting age population voted that year.

Two out of three voters under the age of thirty chose Barack Obama and Joe Biden. John McCain and his running mate, Sarah Palin, won the majority of Americans age sixty-five and older.

And they won the support of fifty-five percent of white voters. No Democrat has won a majority of the white vote since at least nineteen seventy-two. That was the year public opinion researchers started asking such questions on Election Day.

VOICE TWO:

Barack Obama carried the support of African-Americans, Latinos and Asians. He also won independent voters and about one-fifth of people who voted for George Bush four years ago. And he captured almost all of the so-called swing states, where the election was most competitive. These included Ohio, Florida, Virginia and Iowa.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Elections are always emotional events, but this one was especially so.

CALIFORNIA VOTER: "I’m speechless. I’m trying not to cry right now. I’m thinking of my great-grandfather, my grandmother. Man, this is amazing."

That was a voter in California. In Chicago, where Mister Obama and his family live, more than one hundred thousand people gathered in Grant Park. They came to await the election results, and then celebrated5 his victory.
 
President-elect Obama on election night with his wife, Michelle, and their children, 10-year-old Malia and 7-year-old Sasha

BARACK OBAMA: "If there is anyone out there who still doubts that Americais a place where all things are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founders6 is alive in our time, who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer."

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Race is generally a difficult subject for Americans to talk about. Political observers point out that Barack Obama never campaigned as a black candidate so much as a candidate who is black. He talked mostly about issues affecting all Americans -- especially the most important issue, the economy.

VOICE ONE:

His victory comes fifty years after the start of the civil rights movement. And it was just one hundred forty-five years ago when Abraham Lincoln freed blacks from slavery.

But African-Americans could not freely exercise their right to vote in the South until nineteen sixty-five. That was when Congress passed the Voting Rights Act. Blacks had gained the right to vote in eighteen seventy but violence and state laws kept many from doing so.

One man who took part in the civil rights struggle, and was almost killed, is Representative John Lewis of Georgia.

JOHN LEWIS: "It does not matter whether you are black or white or Latino or Asian American or Native American, you can grow up in America and be anything you want to be. People will be saying for years to come, ‘If Barack Obama can do it, you can do it too.’”

VOICE TWO:

John McCain accepted defeat shortly after voting ended Tuesday night. The Arizona Senator promised to support Barack Obama.

JOHN McCAIN: "I urge all Americans who supported me to join me in not just congratulating him, but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together, to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences, and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited.”

Now Barack Obama must work to deliver on his promises. These include middle class tax cuts, new energy programs and a withdrawal7 from Iraq. Expectations are extra high. He will lead a nation fighting two wars and experiencing what he calls the "greatest economic challenge of our lifetime."

VOICE ONE:

Another big issue in the election was health care. An estimated forty-six million Americans, or fifteen percent, did not have health insurance coverage8 last year. Barack Obama wants to require large employers to either offer insurance or pay into a government plan to cover uninsured people. He also proposes a health tax credit for small businesses. And he wants to require insurance companies to offer coverage even to people who already have health problems.

In his victory speech, President-elect Obama said solving America’s problems will not be easy.

BARACK OBAMA: "The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even in one term. But America, I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there.”

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

In Tuesday's elections, the Democrats not only won the presidency9 but also expanded their majorities in both houses of Congress. Alan Lichtman is a political science professor at American University in Washington. He says there is evidence that much can get done when one party controls the Congress and White House. He says this is true especially if a president has big plans. For example, Franklin Roosevelt, a Democrat, was elected in nineteen thirty-two, also at a time of economic crisis. He got a Democratic Congress to pass fifteen major bills in his first one hundred days.

Still, experts say congressional Democrats will not approve everything Mister Obama proposes just because he proposes it. Also, they say that even with increased majorities in Congress, the Democrats may at times have to look to Republicans for support.

VOICE ONE:

The Democrats will also have to see whether last week's results were a sign of a big change in American politics or just a rejection10 of George Bush. The first big test will come with the midterm congressional elections in two years.

Republican losses in two thousand six and again now have led to internal criticism and calls for fresh leadership. Thomas Mann at the Brookings Institution says the Republicans could have a third or fourth rough election before -- in his words -- "they get themselves straightened out."

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Americans also voted on ballot11 measures in thirty-six states. In California, the most populous12 state, voters approved an amendment13 to the state constitution to ban same-sex marriage. Opponents immediately filed legal action. They say the passage of Proposition Eight will deny equal rights for all Californians. In May the California Supreme14 Court ruled that the state constitution protected marriage between homosexuals.

VOICE ONE:

The measure passed with strong support among blacks and Latinos. Similar ballot measures restricting marriage to a man and a woman also passed in Florida and Arizona.

But proposals that would have limited the right to abortion15 failed in California, South Dakota and Colorado.

(MUSIC)

Our program was written by Brianna Blake, Nancy Steinbach and Caty Weaver16. For the latest news, go to voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And this is Shep O’Neal. Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

 


分享到:


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
2 democrat Xmkzf     
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 democrats 655beefefdcaf76097d489a3ff245f76     
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》
4 caucuses d49ca95184fa2aef8e2ee3b613a6f7dd     
n.(政党决定政策或推举竞选人的)核心成员( caucus的名词复数 );决策干部;决策委员会;秘密会议
参考例句:
  • Republican caucuses will happen in about 410 towns across Maine. 共和党团会议选举将在缅因州的约410个城镇进行。 来自互联网
5 celebrated iwLzpz     
adj.有名的,声誉卓著的
参考例句:
  • He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
  • The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。
6 founders 863257b2606659efe292a0bf3114782c     
n.创始人( founder的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • He was one of the founders of the university's medical faculty. 他是该大学医学院的创建人之一。 来自辞典例句
  • The founders of our religion made this a cornerstone of morality. 我们宗教的创始人把这看作是道德的基石。 来自辞典例句
7 withdrawal Cfhwq     
n.取回,提款;撤退,撤军;收回,撤销
参考例句:
  • The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
  • They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。
8 coverage nvwz7v     
n.报导,保险范围,保险额,范围,覆盖
参考例句:
  • There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
  • This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。
9 presidency J1HzD     
n.总统(校长,总经理)的职位(任期)
参考例句:
  • Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
  • Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。
10 rejection FVpxp     
n.拒绝,被拒,抛弃,被弃
参考例句:
  • He decided not to approach her for fear of rejection.他因怕遭拒绝决定不再去找她。
  • The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.遭到拒绝使她陷入了绝望的深渊。
11 ballot jujzB     
n.(不记名)投票,投票总数,投票权;vi.投票
参考例句:
  • The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
  • The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。
12 populous 4ORxV     
adj.人口稠密的,人口众多的
参考例句:
  • London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
  • China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。
13 amendment Mx8zY     
n.改正,修正,改善,修正案
参考例句:
  • The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
  • The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。
14 supreme PHqzc     
adj.极度的,最重要的;至高的,最高的
参考例句:
  • It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
  • He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。
15 abortion ZzjzxH     
n.流产,堕胎
参考例句:
  • She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
  • A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。
16 weaver LgWwd     
n.织布工;编织者
参考例句:
  • She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快,而且布的质量很好。
  • The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交,仅供参考,部分栏目没有内容,如果您有更合适的内容,欢迎 点击提交 分享给大家。