VOA标准英语2010年-Obama, in Gulf, Pledges Full Force Res

President Barack Obama, and LaFourche Parish president Charlotte Randolph, center, get a briefing from U.S. Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen on a beach in Louisiana, 28 May 2010

President Barack Obama inspected areas of the U.S. Gulf¹ coast on Friday,  underscoring his personal concern about the disastrous² deep sea oil leak, and his intention to direct what he called a full force response to the crisis.

Accompanied by key local officials and reporters, the president walked across areas of beach on the Louisiana coast, at one point stooping to pick up tar³ balls from the surf.

The president and his entourage passed groups of local people, some of them holding signs including one that read "Help Us Obama" and "Clean up the Gulf".

Flanked by Gulf coast governors, the president made what he called a solemn pledge to people in the Gulf area.

"I give the people of this community, and the entire Gulf my word, that we're going to hold ourselves accountable to do whatever it takes for as long as it takes to stop this catastrophe⁴, to defend our natural resources, to repair the damage and to keep this region on its feet," said President Obama.

The president said he has ordered a tripling of manpower in areas of the Gulf where oil has already hit the shoreline, or is within 24 hours of doing so.

The president interrupted a Memorial Day holiday stay with his family in Chicago to fly to the Gulf, amid an intense national debate over the administration response to the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion on April 20 and what has become the worst oil spill in U.S. history.

At a White House news conference on Thursday, the president again denied assertions by critics the government sat on the sidelines in the early stages of the situation.

But he acknowledged misjudging the oil industry's capacity to cope with a situation of this magnitude, and pledged again to end what he has called a "cozy⁵ and sometimes corrupt⁶" relationship between government regulators and the oil industry.

President Obama said BP remains⁷ the responsible party for the disaster, and will be held accountable for damages, saying his administration will make sure the company fulfills⁸ its commitments.

In testimony⁹ to congressional committees this week, BP America chief Lamar McKay pointed¹⁰ to what he called the failure of a number of processes, systems and equipment.

"I want to reiterate¹¹ our commitment to finding out what happened," said Lamar McKay.

The president has ordered restrictions¹² on oil drilling projects, and accelerated a reorganization of a government agency that approves offshore¹³ drilling licenses¹⁴.  He has also said the Gulf situation underscores the urgency of shifting to  renewable energy.

Former U.S. Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Thad Allen, who is overseeing operations, said Friday in a technique known as "top kill", heavy drilling mud was able to push down the oil and gas from the leaking well but had not overwhelmed the leak or stopped the flow.

BP has said operations continue and that results would still not be known for another 24 to 48 hours.
 

1 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。

2 disastrous   

adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的

参考例句：

• The heavy rainstorm caused a disastrous flood.暴雨成灾。
• Her investment had disastrous consequences.She lost everything she owned.她的投资结果很惨，血本无归。

3 tar   

n.柏油，焦油；vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于

参考例句：

• The roof was covered with tar.屋顶涂抹了一层沥青。
• We use tar to make roads.我们用沥青铺路。

4 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

5 cozy   

adj.亲如手足的，密切的，暖和舒服的

参考例句：

• I like blankets because they are cozy.我喜欢毛毯，因为他们是舒适的。
• We spent a cozy evening chatting by the fire.我们在炉火旁聊天度过了一个舒适的晚上。

6 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

7 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。

8 fulfills   

v.履行（诺言等）( fulfill的第三人称单数 )；执行（命令等）；达到（目的）；使结束

参考例句：

• He always fulfills his promises. 他总是履行自己的诺言。 来自辞典例句
• His own work amply fulfills this robust claim. 他自己的作品在很大程度上实现了这一正确主张。 来自辞典例句

9 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

10 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

11 reiterate   

v.重申，反复地说

参考例句：

• Let me reiterate that we have absolutely no plans to increase taxation.让我再一次重申我们绝对没有增税的计划。
• I must reiterate that our position on this issue is very clear.我必须重申我们对这一项议题的立场很清楚。

12 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

13 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

14 licenses   

n.执照( license的名词复数 )v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Drivers have ten days' grace to renew their licenses. 驾驶员更换执照有10天的宽限期。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Jewish firms couldn't get import or export licenses or raw materials. 犹太人的企业得不到进出口许可证或原料。 来自辞典例句