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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
State of the Union speech is a chance for Biden to show he's got a handle on crises
President Biden is set to give his Tuesday night address at a moment when the White House is tackling the Ukraine crisis, soaring inflation and the lingering pandemic.
A MARTINEZ, HOST:
Spillover from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, inflation, the pandemic - President Biden is juggling2 a lot. And he'll need to get into all these things tonight during his State of the Union address. He'll need to prove that he also has it all under control. And polling shows that that'll take some convincing. Here to discuss, we go now to NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordo?ez. Let's start with Russia and Ukraine, Franco. How much should we expect the president to get into that tonight?
FRANCO ORDO?EZ, BYLINE3: It's going to be a significant part of the speech. I mean, this is one of the biggest television audiences that he'll get all year. So he's going to take the opportunity to explain to Americans what he's doing about the crisis. Here's White House press secretary Jen Psaki talking about that.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
JEN PSAKI: He will talk about the steps we've taken to not only support the Ukrainian people with military and economic assistance but also the steps he's taken to build a global coalition4 imposing5 crippling financial sanctions on President Putin, his inner circle and the Russian economy.
ORDO?EZ: And Psaki says Biden will talk about U.S. leadership and its importance in the world, also the strength of the West when democracies rally together like they have. You know, but this situation is having a big impact on oil prices because Russia is such a big producer and exporter. So Biden's also expected to talk about steps to mitigate6 those price spikes7.
MARTINEZ: What can he do, though, about gas prices? And how important is this issue of price inflation for him politically, actually?
ORDO?EZ: It's big. I mean, polls show Americans are very concerned about rising prices and don't think he's doing enough about it. And the fact is that inflation is largely beyond his control. But he is going to try to show what he is doing what he can about it. You know, he's expected to outline a four-point plan to lower prices, including making more things in America and strengthening supply chains. And you can expect to hear him talk about infrastructure8. Passing that law last year was a highlight of the year and is expected to create a bunch of jobs. And he'll try again, as he usually does, to make the case that his White House has overseen9 the fastest economic growth in 40 years. He's also expected to talk about his ideas for lowering costs for child care and prescription10 drug prices, although his big social safety net plan, the Build Back Better plan, has stalled in Congress.
MARTINEZ: The president's approval rating's very poor right now. In fact, a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll shows 56% of respondents saw his first year in office as a failure. So what does that mean for this speech tonight?
ORDO?EZ: You know, it means the stakes are really high, given that this is one of the political events of the year where people really tend to tune11 in and pay attention, and also because we're getting so close to the midterm elections. So he'll need to make a compelling case that he's doing something about the issues voters care about. And inflation is for one. But he'll also try to showcase that he's accomplished12 some things that he promised to do. One of those things is his nomination13 of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme14 Court. If confirmed, she'll be the first Black woman to sit on the highest court in the nation. And after a long winter and a long two years of COVID-19, there some optimism about the pandemic that he can point to. So there could be some tangible15 signs of things to get back to normal, a thing that he's expected to talk about.
MARTINEZ: That's NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordo?ez. Thanks a lot.
ORDO?EZ: Thank you.
1 transcript | |
n.抄本,誊本,副本,肄业证书 | |
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2 juggling | |
n. 欺骗, 杂耍(=jugglery) adj. 欺骗的, 欺诈的 动词juggle的现在分词 | |
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3 byline | |
n.署名;v.署名 | |
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4 coalition | |
n.结合体,同盟,结合,联合 | |
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5 imposing | |
adj.使人难忘的,壮丽的,堂皇的,雄伟的 | |
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6 mitigate | |
vt.(使)减轻,(使)缓和 | |
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7 spikes | |
n.穗( spike的名词复数 );跑鞋;(防滑)鞋钉;尖状物v.加烈酒于( spike的第三人称单数 );偷偷地给某人的饮料加入(更多)酒精( 或药物);把尖状物钉入;打乱某人的计划 | |
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8 infrastructure | |
n.下部构造,下部组织,基础结构,基础设施 | |
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9 overseen | |
v.监督,监视( oversee的过去分词 ) | |
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10 prescription | |
n.处方,开药;指示,规定 | |
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11 tune | |
n.调子;和谐,协调;v.调音,调节,调整 | |
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12 accomplished | |
adj.有才艺的;有造诣的;达到了的 | |
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13 nomination | |
n.提名,任命,提名权 | |
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14 supreme | |
adj.极度的,最重要的;至高的,最高的 | |
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15 tangible | |
adj.有形的,可触摸的,确凿的,实际的 | |
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