VOA慢速英语2021 美国前国务卿鲍威尔感染新冠去世

Colin Powell, the first Black American to serve as secretary of state and top military officer, has died at the age of 84.

首位担任国务卿以及军队高层的美国黑人科林·鲍威尔去世，终年84岁。

His family said Monday in a statement on Facebook that Powell died because of "complications from Covid 19. He was fully¹ vaccinated²."

他的家人周一在脸书网上发表声明称，鲍威尔死于新冠肺炎并发症。他已经完全接种了疫苗。

"We have lost a remarkable³ and loving husband, father and grandfather and a great American," the family said. Powell had been treated at Walter Reed National Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

他的家人表示：“我们失去了一位非凡而慈爱的丈夫、父亲、祖父和一位伟大的美国人。”鲍威尔曾在马里兰州贝塞斯达的沃尔特里德国家医疗中心接受治疗。

Powell was one of the leading Black Americans for many years. He served three Republican presidents in senior positions.

鲍威尔多年来一直是美国黑人领袖之一。他曾在三位共和党总统手下担任过高级职位。

Powell joined the army in 1962 and was wounded in Vietnam. He served as U.S. national security adviser⁴ under President Ronald Reagan from 1987 to 1989. As a four-star Army general, he was chairman of the military's Joint⁵ Chiefs of Staff under President George H.W. Bush during the 1991 Gulf⁶ War. In that position, he oversaw⁷ the U.S.-led allied⁸ forces to remove Iraqi troops from neighboring Kuwait.

鲍威尔于1962年入伍，并在越南负伤。1987年到1989年，他在罗纳德·里根总统手下担任美国国家安全顾问。作为陆军四星上将，他于1991年海湾战争期间在小布什总统手下担任美军参谋长联席会议主席。在这个职位上，他负责监督以美国为首的盟军将伊拉克从邻国科威特赶走。

As Joint Chiefs chairman, he supported the idea that the U.S. should only fight if it has clear objectives with public support, enough firepower and a strategy for ending the war.

作为美军参谋长联席会议主席，他支持这样一种观点，即美国只有在存在公众明确支持、火力充足以及具备结束战争战略的明确目标时才能发动战争。

During his time as secretary of state under former President George W. Bush, Powell argued before the U.N. Security Council in 2003 that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was a danger to the world. Using incorrect intelligence information, he said Iraq was keeping chemical and biological weapons. Powell later said the presentation was "a blot⁹" – or a mark of shame -- that will "always be a part of my record."

鲍威尔在前总统小布什手下担任国务卿期间，于2003年在联合国安理会上辩称，伊拉克总统萨达姆·侯赛因对世界构成威胁。他采用错误情报信息，说伊拉克存在生化武器。鲍威尔后来表示，这次演讲是将是伴随他一生的污点。

Powell, a Republican, considered running for president in 1996 but changed his mind because his wife Alma worried about his safety. In 2008, he supported Democrat¹⁰ Barack Obama, who became the first Black American elected to the White House.

作为共和党人的鲍威尔曾于1996年考虑竞选总统，但是由于他的妻子阿尔玛担心他的安全而作罢。2008年，他支持民主党人巴拉克·奥巴马，后者成为首位入主白宫的美国黑人。

Powell rose from a childhood in a poor New York neighborhood to become the nation's chief diplomat¹¹. He wrote in his 1995 book My American Journey, "Mine is the story of a black kid of no early promise from an immigrant family of limited means who was raised in the South Bronx."

鲍威尔从小在纽约的一个贫穷社区长大，后来成为了美国的首席外交官。他在1995年出版的《我的美国之旅》一书中写道：“这是一个前途未卜的黑人小孩的故事，他在南布朗克斯一个经济拮据的移民家庭长大。”

Powell is survived by his wife, Alma, and their three children.

鲍威尔身后留下了他的妻子阿尔玛以及三个孩子。

On Monday, former President George W. Bush said that he and former first lady Laura Bush were "deeply saddened" by Powell's death.

周一，前总统小布什表示，他和前第一夫人劳拉对鲍威尔的去世深感悲痛。

Bush wrote, "He was a great public servant" and "widely respected at home and abroad."

小布什写道：“他是一名伟大的公仆，在国内外广受尊重。”

The former president added: "And most important, Colin was a family man and a friend. Laura and I send Alma and their children our sincere condolences as they remember the life of a great man."

这位前总统还写道：“最重要的是，鲍威尔是一位家人和朋友。我和劳拉向阿尔玛以及他们的孩子致以诚挚的哀悼。”

1 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

2 vaccinated   

[医]已接种的，种痘的，接种过疫菌的

参考例句：

• I was vaccinated against tetanus. 我接种了破伤风疫苗。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child? 你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

3 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

4 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

5 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

6 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

7 oversaw   

v.监督，监视( oversee的过去式 )

参考例句：

• He will go down as the president who oversaw two historic transitions. 他将作为见证了巴西两次历史性转变的总统，安然引退。 来自互联网
• Dixon oversaw the project as creative director of Design Research Studio. 狄克逊监督项目的创意总监设计研究工作室。 来自互联网

8 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

9 blot   

vt.弄脏（用吸墨纸）吸干；n.污点，污渍

参考例句：

• That new factory is a blot on the landscape.那新建的工厂破坏了此地的景色。
• The crime he committed is a blot on his record.他犯的罪是他的履历中的一个污点。

10 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。

11 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。