2006年VOA标准英语-Immigration Likely A Key US Election Issue

By Jim Malone
Washington
27 July 2006

Demonstrators gather for immigrant rights rally in Chicago   
  
Immigration is expected to be a significant issue in the November congressional elections in the United States.

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Immigration reform can be an emotional issue. It is for these immigrant rights protesters in Florida.

Emotional as well for Republican Congressman¹ J.D. Hayworth, who is from the southwestern border of state of Arizona.

Hayworth says many of his constituents² want the federal government to crack down on illegal immigrants crossing into the country from Mexico. "Washington has been slow getting around to this problem. But the people have spoken and the people say, enforce our borders and enforce our laws," he said.

Hayworth is part of a group of vocal³ Republicans in the House of Representatives who favor legislation that would emphasize border security and criminalize illegal immigrants.

That group is at odds⁴ with President Bush, who prefers a Senate version of reform that seeks to secure the borders and also offers a path to citizenship⁵ for the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants now inside the country. "I will always remember that immigrants have helped shaped the character of this nation. We are a land of immigrants. We are a nation of law and we can be a compassionate⁶ nation when it comes to immigration, and the two do not conflict," he said.

The divisions among Republicans on this issue are sharp, as Congressman Hayworth demonstrated during a recent speech to a group of college students who gathered in Washington. "And on this question, respectfully, politely but profoundly, Mr. President, you are wrong," he said.

Democrats⁷ are divided over the issue as well, though many tend to favor the approach that combines border security with an option for illegal immigrants to legalize their status.

A recent public opinion poll found that immigration is likely to be a top issue in the November elections. "Looking at this, the top six issues were Iraq, the economy and jobs, immigration, terrorism, health care and a decline in moral values," said Brian Nienaber, of the Tarrance Group, a Republican polling firm.

University of Virginia political analyst⁸ Larry Sabato predicts immigration will be a top issue in many of the states along the Mexico-U.S. border. "In the southwestern United States, immigration is a big, big issue. It may be the top issue, even more important than Iraq. In other parts of the country, less so. It is on the agenda, but it is well down the agenda," he said.

Many analysts⁹ note, however, that congressional midterm elections are often decided¹⁰ by local issues and the relative strengths and weaknesses of local candidates.

The immigration debate could have a political impact far beyond this year's election.

Hispanic-Americans made up nearly 13-percent of the voters in the 2004 election and that vote will continue to grow quickly in the years ahead, providing opportunities for both major political parties.

Stephen Wayne is a professor of government at Georgetown University in Washington. "The Hispanics are the largest growing group in our society and in the electorate¹¹, and since the parties are at parity¹² today, they are about equal, how the Hispanic votes goes in the future may determine which of the two major parties becomes the majority party," he said.

Congress remains¹³ deadlocked¹⁴ over competing versions of immigration reform legislation and it remains unclear whether a compromise will emerge before the elections.

Democrats need to pick up 15 seats to regain¹⁵ a majority in the House and six seats to retake control of the Senate.

1 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。

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 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

4 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

5 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。

6 compassionate   

adj.有同情心的，表示同情的

参考例句：

• She is a compassionate person.她是一个有同情心的人。
• The compassionate judge gave the young offender a light sentence.慈悲的法官从轻判处了那个年轻罪犯。

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 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。

9 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

10 decided   

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。

11 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。

12 parity   

n.平价，等价，比价，对等

参考例句：

• The two currencies have now reached parity.这两种货币现已达到同等价值。
• Women have yet to achieve wage or occupational parity in many fields.女性在很多领域还没能争取到薪金、职位方面的平等。

13 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

14 deadlocked   

陷入僵局的；僵持不下的

参考例句：

• The plan deadlocked over the funds. 这个计划由于经费问题而搁浅了。
• The meeting deadlocked over the wage issue. 会议因工资问题而停顿下来。

15 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。