2006年VOA标准英语-Bush Seeks to Unify Republicans on Immigra

By Jim Malone
Washington
16 May 2006
 

Patrons at El Portal restaurant watch President Bush deliver his immigration speech Monday  
  
President Bush is focused on winning over members of his own Republican Party in a bid to reform the U.S. immigration system. 

----------------------------------

There are two parts to the immigration debate.  First, how to control the borders and stem the flow of illegal aliens into the United States.  And second, how should the country deal with the 11 to 12 million illegal immigrants already inside the country.

In his speech this week, President Bush sought to find a middle ground. 

 
George Bush
  
"America can be a lawful¹ society and a welcoming society at the same time," said Mr. Bush.

The president will dispatch thousands of National Guard troops to help shore up the southern U.S. border with Mexico.

That is important to many conservative Republicans in Congress who insist that border security is the top immigration challenge.

This is Senator Jeff Sessions, a Republican from Alabama:

"I think there are a lot of members of Congress that will not support legislation that they think is ineffective in enforcement at the border," said Mr. Sessions.

Sessions and other Republicans, especially those in border states, are getting an earful about illegal immigration from constituents² like George Morin, who owns a cattle ranch³ in Arizona.

"Any of these big corporations that willingly hire them, I would love to see them just slapped… with a substantial fine, not a slap on the hand," he said.

President Bush also wants to establish a guest worker program and create a path to citizenship⁴ for the millions of illegal immigrants already in the United States.

But Republicans are split on comprehensive immigration reform.  Late last year, House Republicans passed a bill that would build a fence along the Mexican border and would criminalize those illegal immigrants in the United States.

Some Republicans in the Senate, joined by opposition⁵ Democrats⁷, favor a more comprehensive approach along the lines proposed by the president.

Senator Dick Durbin, a Democrat⁶ from Illinois, says it is up to Mr. Bush to unify⁸ his own party in support of comprehensive reform.
 

Richard Durbin  
  
"The president has the power to call up the National Guard to patrol our border, but now he must summon the power to lead his own Republican forces in Congress to support a bipartisan, comprehensive immigration reform," said Mr. Durbin.

Experts say the political stakes in the immigration debate are high.

Georgetown University political analyst⁹ Stephen Wayne says President Bush and his fellow Republicans must be careful not to alienate¹⁰ Hispanic-American voters in their quest to enact¹¹ immigration reform.

"One, the president has to try to gain Republican support, particularly in the House of Representatives," said Mr. Wayne.  "And two, the Hispanics are the largest growing group in our society and in the electorate¹²."

The action now is focused in the Senate, where debate on a comprehensive immigration reform bill is expected to lead to a vote by the end of May.

Once again, analyst Stephen Wayne.

"The issue is whether there is anything else on the bill other than border security," added Mr. Wayne.  "Some Republicans hope there is not.  I think most Democrats and some Republicans hope that there is some kind of guest worker program."

Major differences between the Senate and House versions of immigration reform would have to be worked out through negotiations¹³.  But some experts believe that could be difficult because many lawmakers may not be willing to compromise on the issue as they prepare for re-election battles in the November congressional elections.

1 lawful   

adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的

参考例句：

• It is not lawful to park in front of a hydrant.在消火栓前停车是不合法的。
• We don't recognised him to be the lawful heir.我们不承认他为合法继承人。

2 constituents   

n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素

参考例句：

• She has the full support of her constituents. 她得到本区选民的全力支持。
• Hydrogen and oxygen are the constituents of water. 氢和氧是水的主要成分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 ranch   

n.大牧场，大农场

参考例句：

• He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。
• The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。

4 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。

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 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。

7 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》

8 unify   

vt.使联合，统一；使相同，使一致

参考例句：

• How can we unify such scattered islands into a nation?我们怎么才能把如此分散的岛屿统一成一个国家呢？
• It is difficult to imagine how the North and South could ever agree on a formula to unify the divided peninsula.很难想象南北双方在统一半岛的方案上究竟怎样才能达成一致。

9 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。

10 alienate   

vt.使疏远，离间；转让(财产等)

参考例句：

• His attempts to alienate the two friends failed because they had complete faith.他离间那两个朋友的企图失败了，因为他们彼此完全信任。
• We'd better not alienate ourselves from the colleagues.我们最好还是不要与同事们疏远。

11 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。

12 electorate   

n.全体选民；选区

参考例句：

• The government was responsible to the electorate.政府对全体选民负责。
• He has the backing of almost a quarter of the electorate.他得到了几乎1/4选民的支持。

13 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。