2007年VOA标准英语-Bush Looks to Bolster Republican Support on Ira

By Jim Malone
Washington
11 July 2007

President Bush is working to shore up support among fellow Republicans for the war in Iraq, even as opinion polls suggest that public backing for the war effort continues to erode¹.  VOA national correspondent Jim Malone has more from Washington.

US soldiers prepare to search homes in Baghdad, Iraq, 28 June 2007

The latest USA Today-Gallup poll found that 62 percent of those asked believe the United States made a mistake in invading Iraq in 2003, and that 71 percent now favor removing most U.S. troops by next April.

The further erosion in public support for the war comes amid growing calls among Republicans for a change in course on Iraq, including some longtime supporters of the administration like New Mexico Senator Pete Domenici.

US Senator Pete Domenici talks to reporters, 7 Nov 2006 (file photo)

"I'm unwilling² to continue our current strategy when the Iraqi government fails to advance the interests of the Iraqi people," he said.

Veteran Republican political strategist Ed Rollins says the growing Republican split on Iraq reflects the declining support for the war among the American public.

"I support the president on this war, I support the troops, obviously, who are still there," he said on NBC's Today show.  "But at the end of the day, this is not going to work without public support, and the public support is eroding³ by the moment."

Analysts⁵ say the split over Iraq is also a reflection of the growing concern among some Republicans that they will be politically vulnerable in next year's elections unless they put some distance between themselves and President Bush.

John McIntyre is editor of realclearpolitics.com, a website that tracks U.S. politics and the 2008 presidential election.

"On the Republican side, I think you have a consensus⁶ forming among some that they kind of have a pessimistic view of where things are heading in Iraq," he said.  "And so I think you see some Republican senators, particularly moderates, particularly Republican senators from blue [Democratic leaning] states who are up for re-election in 2008."

The divisions within the Republican ranks on Iraq come at a time when congressional Democrats⁷ are preparing to take more aggressive action to try and force the president to chart a different course in Iraq that will start bringing U.S. troops home.

Joseph Biden (Jan 2007 photo)

Senator Joe Biden from Delaware is one of eight Democrats running for president.

"Do we continue to send our kids into the middle of a meat grinder based on a policy that is fundamentally flawed," he asked.

President Bush is trying to bolster⁸ Republican support for his Iraq policy.  The president argues that lawmakers should withhold⁹ judgment¹⁰ until September when the top U.S. commanders in Iraq will report to Congress and the American people on the impact of the troop surge.

"They expect for military people to come back and tell us how the military operations are going," said Mr. Bush.  "And that is the way I am going to play it as the commander in chief."

But analyst⁴ John McIntyre adds that some Republicans simply are not willing to wait that long.

"And the big battle is that the president would like to see the Congress have the patience to wait until September to hear on the progress from General Petraeus and whether the change in strategy is producing any results," he noted¹¹.  "But I think you are seeing some of these Republican senators feeling that because of their personal political interests, they do not want to wait until September.  They want to get out in front of the situation now."

At the same time, few Republicans at this point seem willing to join Democrats in their efforts to force a timeline for U.S. troop withdrawals¹³ on the administration.

Sen. John McCain talks with reporters on Capitol Hill, 10 July 2007

Arizona Republican John McCain is recently back from Iraq and remains¹⁴ one of the president's most vocal¹⁵ supporters in the Senate.

"Mr. President, the terrorists are in this war to win it," he said.  "The question is, are we?"

But McCain may be paying a political price for his staunch support on Iraq as he continues to lag behind in the race for the Republican Party's presidential nomination¹⁶.

Many experts say it is too early to tell what impact the Republican defections over Iraq will have on U.S. policy.

Duke University political scientist Christopher Gelpi predicts that the loss of Republican support will eventually force the president to make some adjustments in the deployment¹⁷ of U.S. forces in Iraq.

"What I think it most likely to happen is that the president will have to start making grudging¹⁸ concessions¹⁹ in order to avoid complete abandonment by Republicans, especially in the Senate," he said.

Iraq remains the central issue in the early stage of the 2008 presidential election campaign.  The Democratic candidates generally favor some type of phased troop withdrawal¹² from Iraq while most of the Republican contenders support the president's contention²⁰ that Iraq is the central front in the overall war on terror.

1 erode   

v.侵蚀，腐蚀，使...减少、减弱或消失

参考例句：

• Once exposed,soil is quickly eroded by wind and rain.一旦暴露在外，土壤很快就会被风雨侵蚀。
• Competition in the financial marketplace has eroded profits.金融市场的竞争降低了利润。

2 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

3 eroding   

侵蚀，腐蚀( erode的现在分词 )； 逐渐毁坏，削弱，损害

参考例句：

• The coast is slowly eroding. 海岸正慢慢地被侵蚀。
• Another new development is eroding the age-old stereotype of the male warrior. 另一个新现象是，久已形成的男人皆武士的形象正逐渐消失。

4 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。

5 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。

6 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

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 bolster   

n.枕垫；v.支持，鼓励

参考例句：

• The high interest rates helped to bolster up the economy.高利率使经济更稳健。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

9 withhold   

v.拒绝，不给；使停止，阻挡

参考例句：

• It was unscrupulous of their lawyer to withhold evidence.他们的律师隐瞒证据是不道德的。
• I couldn't withhold giving some loose to my indignation.我忍不住要发泄一点我的愤怒。

10 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

11 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

12 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

13 withdrawals   

n.收回，取回，撤回( withdrawal的名词复数 )；撤退，撤走；收回[取回，撤回，撤退，撤走]的实例；推出（组织），提走（存款），戒除毒瘾，对说过的话收回，孤僻

参考例句：

• He has made several withdrawals from his bank account. 他从银行账户上提了几次款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It is not the bank's policy to deduct interest on withdrawals. 提款需扣除利息这并非是本银行的政策。 来自辞典例句

14 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。

15 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。

16 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

17 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

18 grudging   

adj.勉强的，吝啬的

参考例句：

• He felt a grudging respect for her talents as an organizer.他勉强地对她的组织才能表示尊重。
• After a pause he added"sir."in a dilatory,grudging way.停了一会他才慢吞吞地、勉勉强强地加了一声“先生”。

19 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。

20 contention   

n.争论，争辩，论战；论点，主张

参考例句：

• The pay increase is the key point of contention. 加薪是争论的焦点。
• The real bone of contention,as you know,is money.你知道，争论的真正焦点是钱的问题。