2007年VOA标准英语-Democrats Challenge Bush on Iraq

By Scott Stearns
White House
01 September 2007

President Bush reports to Congress this month on the results from his decision to send more troops to Iraq. VOA White House Correspondent Scott Stearns reports, opposition¹ Democrats³ say his strategy is not working and it is time to start bringing U.S. troops home.

An Iraqi man is searched by US Army troops in Baghdad, Iraq, 4 Aug. 2007

President Bush says his September 15 report to Congress will assess what is going well in Iraq, what can be improved, and what adjustments might be made. Mr. Bush says legislators should withhold⁴ judgment⁵ until they have heard it.

But opposition Democrats, and some within the president's own Republican Party, are not withholding⁶ judgment.

In the Democratic Party's Saturday radio address, Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky says the troop reinforcements have failed to achieve their goal of reducing violence so progress can be made on political reconciliation⁷.

Democrat2 Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky of Illinois (l)<br />and Republican Congressman8 Chris Shays of Connecticut" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070907/0959251.jpg" width="172" vspace="2" border="0" />

Democrat Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky of Illinois and Republican Congressman Chris Shays of Connecticut (file photo)

"The president's surge has failed, and there is no end in sight for the war in Iraq," she said.

Schakowsky visited Iraq last month and says top commander General David Petraeus told her U.S. troops could be in Iraq another nine or 10 years. She says that is not the timetable most Americans have in mind, and she urged Republican members of Congress to support a draw down of troops. .

"The best way to protect our troops is to end this war in Iraq," she added.  "With the president stubbornly continuing to stay the course in Iraq, I urge my Republican colleagues to join with Democrats and the vast majority of Americans who are demanding a new direction in Iraq and refocusing America's efforts on fighting the real threats of terrorism around the world."

In August, John Warner, a former Navy secretary and a Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said President Bush should bring some U.S. troops home by the end of the year.

White House officials say the president will make no decisions about the way forward in Iraq until hearing from General Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker.

Defense9 Secretary Robert Gates, and outgoing Joint10 Chiefs Chairman Gen. Peter Pace, 31 Aug 2007" src="/upimg/allimg/070907/0959252.jpg" width="210" border="0" />

President Bush, left, waves as he leaves the Pentagon, with Defense Secretary Robert Gates, and outgoing Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Peter Pace, 31 Aug 2007

But in remarks meant to rebuild public support for the war, Mr. Bush has made clear that he believes withdrawing troops now would embolden¹¹ the enemy and make America more vulnerable to terrorist attack.

In his weekly radio address, the president focused on economic proposals meant to ease U.S. mortgage defaults, which have disrupted worldwide financial markets.

His plan would make it easier for borrowers holding adjustable¹² rate mortgages to refinance those loans through the government housing authority.

Thousands of American homeowners have fallen behind on their mortgage payments because their adjustable rate mortgages have reset¹³ at higher interest rates.

As the mortgage industry goes through a period of adjustment, Mr. Bush says the federal government will help troubled homeowners but not lenders who made unwise loans or consumers who purchased homes beyond their means. 

President Bush

"The Federal government will not bail¹⁴ out lenders because that would only make a recurrence¹⁵ of the problem more likely," he said.  "And it is not the government's job to bail out speculators, or those who made the decision to buy a home they knew they could never afford. But I support action at the Federal level that will help more American families keep their homes."

Economists¹⁶ estimate the monthly payments on some two million adjustable rate mortgages will rise in the next two years.

1 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

2 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。

3 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》

4 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。

5 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。

6 withholding   

扣缴税款

参考例句：

• She was accused of withholding information from the police. 她被指控对警方知情不报。
• The judge suspected the witness was withholding information. 法官怀疑见证人在隐瞒情况。

7 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

8 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。

9 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

10 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。

11 embolden   

v.给…壮胆，鼓励

参考例句：

• Emboldened by the wine,he went over to introduce himself to her.他借酒壮胆，走上前去向她作自我介绍。
• The Prime Minister was steadily emboldened by the discovery that he faced no opposition.发现自己并未遭到反对，首相渐渐有了信心。

12 adjustable   

adj.可调整的，可校准的

参考例句：

• More expensive cameras have adjustable focusing.比较贵的照相机有可调焦距。
• The chair has the virtue of being adjustable.这种椅子具有可调节的优点。

13 reset   

v.重新安排，复位；n.重新放置；重放之物

参考例句：

• As soon as you arrive at your destination,step out of the aircraft and reset your wristwatch.你一到达目的地，就走出飞机并重新设置手表时间。
• He is recovering from an operation to reset his arm.他做了一个手臂复位手术，正在恢复。

14 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。

15 recurrence   

n.复发，反复，重现

参考例句：

• More care in the future will prevent recurrence of the mistake.将来的小心可防止错误的重现。
• He was aware of the possibility of a recurrence of his illness.他知道他的病有可能复发。

16 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》