2006年VOA标准英语-US Political Leaders See Compromise, Cooperatio

By Jim Malone
Washington
18 December 2006

2006 was a year of change in U.S. politics as Democrats¹ won back control of Congress for the first time in 12 years. As VOA National Correspondent Jim Malone reports from Washington, public unhappiness over the war in Iraq was a major factor in Democratic victories in the November congressional midterm elections.

With Democrats ready to take control of the Senate and House of Representatives in January, both parties say they are open to compromise and cooperation, at least for now.

 
Nancy Pelosi
Democratic Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi of California is set to become the first woman Speaker of the House.

"I look forward to working in a confidence building way with the president, recognizing that we have our differences and we will debate them and that is what our founders² intended," she said.

There were conciliatory words as well from President Bush, who will have to finish out the last two years of his presidency³ without a Republican majority in Congress.

"The elections are now behind us but the challenges still remain and, therefore, we are going to work together to address those challenges in a constructive⁴ way," he said.

 
Voter casts his vote in Miami, Florida, 7 Nov 2006
Voter surveys indicated that public discontent over the war in Iraq played a major role in the election.

"We saw a dramatic change because voters, Americans in general, were dissatisfied with the direction of the country, the president's performance and particularly what was happening on the ground in Iraq," said Stuart Rothenberg, who publishes an independent political newsletter in Washington. "So, this election was certainly about change versus⁵ status quo."

 
Rep. Mark Foley, right, speaks during news conference (file photo)
Republicans were also hurt by an influence-peddling scandal involving now disgraced Republican lobbyist Jack⁶ Abramoff, and the controversy⁷ involving former Republican Congressman⁸ Mark Foley and his inappropriate sexual e-mails to teenage congressional pages.

Many political experts believe the election results also demonstrate the public's yearning⁹ for a more centrist approach to the nation's problems and a rejection¹⁰ of the sharp partisan¹¹ differences that have characterized U.S. political debate in recent years.

University of Virginia analyst¹² Larry Sabato says self-described moderate and independent voters preferred Democratic candidates over Republicans by a wide margin¹³.

"The moderates, the centrists, were just about divided in 2004, as were the pure independents, between the two major parties," he said. "This year, close to 60 percent of the independents and the moderates voted Democratic. So it is obvious where the shift came in. The centrists and moderates were the ones who were unhappy and they made sure that their voices, collectively, were heard."

Democrats saw the election results as vindication¹⁴ of their campaign promises to change course in Iraq and clean up congressional corruption¹⁵.

But some experts caution Democrats not to exaggerate their support among the public.

"...If Democrats see this as a mandate¹⁶, I think they are crazy," says Charles Cook, editor of the influential¹⁷ Cook Political Report. "If they see this as an opportunity, then I think they are smart, because nobody voted for Democrats, they voted against Republicans."

Washington now faces the prospect¹⁸ of divided government, much as it did during most of the administration of former President Bill Clinton.

Political analyst Stuart Rothenberg predicts the post-election promises of cooperation from the president and congressional Democrats could quickly give way to partisan bickering¹⁹ over Iraq and other issues.

"So the president at one moment sounds open to changing policy, and the next minute sounds like he is not eager to change it," he said. "Democrats one moment sound as though they want to be bipartisan and cooperate, but within a matter of months now, I think you will see a number of oversight²⁰ hearings examining administration policy on everything from Iraq to high gas prices in the United States to what the administration did after Hurricane Katrina, and that is likely to add some significant bitterness to the water."

Another complicating²¹ factor is the early activity in advance of the 2008 presidential election. For the first time since 1952, no sitting president or vice²² president is in the running, and both parties expect competitive races in the caucuses²³ and primaries that make up the nominating process.

That could cause some Republican contenders who would normally support President Bush to break with him on certain issues, to enhance their own chances at the Republican presidential nomination²⁴.

1 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》

2 founders   

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

3 presidency   

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。

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 versus   

prep.以…为对手，对；与…相比之下

参考例句：

• The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
• The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。

6 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

7 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

8 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。

9 yearning   

a.渴望的；向往的；怀念的

参考例句：

• a yearning for a quiet life 对宁静生活的向往
• He felt a great yearning after his old job. 他对过去的工作有一种强烈的渴想。

10 rejection   

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 partisan   

adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒

参考例句：

• In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。
• The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

12 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

13 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。

14 vindication   

n.洗冤，证实

参考例句：

• There is much to be said in vindication of his claim.有很多理由可以提出来为他的要求作辩护。
• The result was a vindication of all our efforts.这一结果表明我们的一切努力是必要的。

15 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

16 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

17 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

18 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

19 bickering   

v.争吵( bicker的现在分词 )；口角；（水等）作潺潺声；闪烁

参考例句：

• The children are always bickering about something or other. 孩子们有事没事总是在争吵。
• The two children were always bickering with each other over small matters. 这两个孩子总是为些小事斗嘴。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

20 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。

21 complicating   

使复杂化( complicate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• High spiking fever with chills is suggestive of a complicating pylephlebitis. 伴有寒战的高热，暗示合并门静脉炎。
• In America these actions become executive puberty rites, complicating relationships that are already complicated enough. 在美国，这些行动成了行政青春期的惯例，使本来已经够复杂的关系变得更复杂了。

22 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

23 caucuses   

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

24 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。