2006年VOA标准英语-Immigration Issues Create Sharp Political

By Jim Malone
Washington
03 May 2006

Supporters of immigrant rights in the United States hope to increase their political influence after this week's rallies and boycotts¹ across the country.  Immigration has become a hot political issue in the United States, and both major political parties are trying to figure out what impact the issue will have in the November congressional elections and the presidential election in 2008. 

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A group of protesters in Orlando, Florida, was typical of the more than one million illegal and legal immigrants who came out in force to make their economic and political presence felt around the country.

"We are not criminals,” they said.  “We are mostly people who come to work and come to stay here.  We work."

 
Young girl holds sign reading, "We Are Immigrants, Not Criminals," as people march in Los Angeles on 1 May 2006
  
Immigrant rights groups intend to build on that public display of potential political power by helping² hundreds of thousands of immigrants become citizens and registering them to vote over the next few years.

But the American public remains³ deeply divided over the immigration issue.  Recent public opinion polls indicate a majority of Americans want to better control the nation's borders to stem the flow of illegal aliens, who number an estimated 11 to 12 million inside the United States.

In some cases, the immigration protests have sparked a backlash by conservative groups demanding that the government do a better job of enforcing existing immigration laws.

Retired⁴ U.S. Army Colonel Al Rodriguez heads a group of Hispanic Americans that opposes illegal immigration.

"We understand the important contribution immigrants have made to the economy and the industry of this great nation,” said Rodriguez, “but the difference is that we and millions of others like us did it legally.  We are all here today to tell those illegal protesters, ‘you do not speak for me.’"

The political divide on immigration is also reflected in Congress.  A bill passed by the House of Representatives focuses on border security while the Senate is deadlocked⁵ over a more comprehensive bill that also offers illegal immigrants a pathway to citizenship⁶.

President Bush is among those who favor a guest worker program that would legalize the status of many illegal workers.

"One of the things that is very important is when we debate this issue is that we not lose our national soul,” said the president, “and one of the great things about America is that we have been able to take people from all walks of life bound as one nation under God, and that is the challenge ahead of us."

But Republicans are deeply split on the issue, with conservatives like Colorado Congressman⁷ Tom Tancredo insisting that illegal immigrants be sent back to their home countries.

"A majority of Republicans in the House of Representatives will not accept any form of amnesty," he said. Another faction⁸ of the Republican Party is more sympathetic to businesses and corporations that rely on less expensive immigrant labor⁹.

Political experts say both parties have a lot at stake in the immigration debate. "The Hispanics are the largest growing group in our society and in the electorate,” explains Stephen Wayne, a professor of government at Georgetown University in Washington,” and since the parties are at parity¹⁰ 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."

Democrats¹² are hoping to take advantage of the Republican divide on immigration and win over Hispanic voters.  However, Democrats are also split on the issue, with many concerned about the impact of cheap immigrant labor on U.S. labor unions, a major source of support for many Democratic Party candidates.

"While in one sense they want to help people and help the immigrants come in and they want to benefit from the Hispanic vote,” said Wayne, “they do not want to increase the opportunity for businesses to pay much less than the standard (wage) rate."

What impact the recent demonstrations¹³ will have on immigration legislation before the Congress remains unclear.

Congressman Jose Serrano, a Democrat¹¹ from New York who supports immigrant rights, is optimistic. "I believe that the reason the Senate is trying to look for a compromise or something less malicious¹⁴ is because of all the protests," he said.

But others fear that bridging the immigration divide during a congressional election year is unlikely.

"The parties are faced with a kind of insoluble and impossible situation whereby whatever they do, they will alienate¹⁵ a large number of their constituents¹⁶, some of whom have rights to vote and some of whom do not," said Robert Barsky, an expert on immigration politics at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee.

No matter what Congress does this year, experts agree that immigration is likely to be a top issue both in this year's congressional elections and in the presidential contest in 2008.

1 boycotts   

（对某事物的）抵制( boycott的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Their methods included boycotts and court action, supplemented by'sit-ins". 他们的主要方法包括联合抵制、法庭起诉，还附带进行静坐抗议。
• Are boycotts for other purposes illegal? 至于用于其它目的的联合抵制行动是否也是非法的呢？

2 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

3 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。

4 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

5 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。

6 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。

7 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。

8 faction   

n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争

参考例句：

• Faction and self-interest appear to be the norm.派系之争和自私自利看来非常普遍。
• I now understood clearly that I was caught between the king and the Bunam's faction.我现在完全明白自己已陷入困境，在国王与布纳姆集团之间左右为难。

9 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

10 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。

11 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。

12 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》

13 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

14 malicious   

adj.有恶意的，心怀恶意的

参考例句：

• You ought to kick back at such malicious slander. 你应当反击这种恶毒的污蔑。
• Their talk was slightly malicious.他们的谈话有点儿心怀不轨。

15 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。

16 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》