美国国家公共电台 NPR--McCarthy's constituents watched as negotiations with Biden avoided debt default

McCarthy's constituents¹ watched as negotiations² with Biden avoided debt default

Transcript³

Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy emerged from his first major fight as speaker with a debt ceiling deal. But it wasn't without controversy⁴ — or a big dose of bipartisanship.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

Kevin McCarthy cleared his first major hurdle⁵ as Speaker of the House last week, securing passage of a deal to raise the debt limit and avoid a default. Back home, some constituents are praising the Republican lawmaker's handling of the tense negotiations. KVPR's Joshua Yeager reports from Bakersfield, Calif., in the heart of McCarthy's district.

JOSHUA YEAGER, BYLINE⁶: The inviting⁷ aroma⁸ of oxtail stew⁹, lamb chops and other traditional Basque dishes wafts¹⁰ through the air at Wool Growers. Bakersfield is home to one of the country's largest Basque communities, and the 67-year-old family-run restaurant is a staple¹¹ here. Owner Jenny Maitia-Poncetta and many patrons have watched the debt ceiling showdown unfold from a tiny TV that hangs above the bar. But for the restaurateur and longtime McCarthy supporter, the saga¹² is more personal.

JENNY MAITIA-PONCETTA: We're very proud of Kevin because he is our hometown boy.

YEAGER: Less enamored with the Bakersfield boy, though, are members of his own party and the far-right Freedom Caucus¹³. The group of hardline conservatives expressed publicly their disdain¹⁴ for a deal they argue doesn't go far enough to cut government spending. Ultimately, the bill passed the House with more Democratic votes than Republicans. But Maitia-Poncetta and many local Republicans view McCarthy's willingness to compromise as a strength.

MAITIA-PONCETTA: I am a Republican, and I'm proud of being a Republican. But I know we need to work together to make it work.

YEAGER: And besides, she says, the deal saw nondefense spending shrink for the first time in years. Deeper cuts would be ideal, but that's still a win for conservatives.

MAITIA-PONCETTA: Anything is better than nothing.

YEAGER: Diner Randy McDaniel agrees, between sips¹⁵ of hearty¹⁶ vegetable soup.

RANDY MCDANIEL: I'm very conservative, but I think the people that are too far right are going to kill us if they don't get in the middle a little bit.

YEAGER: In particular, McDaniel says he's happy to see the expansion of work requirements tied to food stamp eligibility¹⁷.

MCDANIEL: I'm good with helping¹⁸ people that really need it, but I think there's too many people out there that are not doing their part to try and improve.

YEAGER: Ivy¹⁹ Cargile is a political science professor at California State University Bakersfield. She's been watching the discussions closely and says McCarthy fared better than expected, given his contentious²⁰ path to the speakership.

IVY CARGILE: The debt ceiling bill passed, and this is a win for him. This is a solid win for him.

YEAGER: She says a deal to raise the debt limit and spare the country an unprecedented²¹ financial crisis was hardly a foregone conclusion.

CARGILE: I was concerned. In Kern County, poverty levels are high. People do live paycheck to paycheck. And for some people, that paycheck is from the federal government.

YEAGER: A federal government that will see its own funding fight at the end of the year. And with the Republican conference fractured, and a new rule that any single member can motion to fire the speaker, McCarthy's win in Washington may be short lived. For NPR News, I'm Joshua Yeager in Bakersfield.

(SOUNDBITE OF GOGO PENGUIN'S "EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE OK")

1 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》

2 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

5 hurdle   

n.跳栏，栏架；障碍，困难；vi.进行跨栏赛

参考例句：

• The weather will be the biggest hurdle so I have to be ready.天气将会是最大的障碍，所以我必须要作好准备。
• She clocked 11.6 seconds for the 80 metre hurdle.八十米跳栏赛跑她跑了十一秒六。

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。

8 aroma   

n.香气，芬芳，芳香

参考例句：

• The whole house was filled with the aroma of coffee.满屋子都是咖啡的香味。
• The air was heavy with the aroma of the paddy fields.稻花飘香。

9 stew   

n.炖汤，焖，烦恼；v.炖汤，焖，忧虑

参考例句：

• The stew must be boiled up before serving.炖肉必须煮熟才能上桌。
• There's no need to get in a stew.没有必要烦恼。

10 wafts   

n.空中飘来的气味，一阵气味( waft的名词复数 )；摇转风扇v.吹送，飘送，（使）浮动( waft的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• A breeze wafts the sweet smell of roses. 微风吹来了玫瑰花的芬芳（香味）。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• A breeze wafts the smell of roses. 微风吹送玫瑰花香气。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 staple   

n.主要产物，常用品，主要要素，原料，订书钉，钩环；adj.主要的，重要的；vt.分类

参考例句：

• Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
• Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。

12 saga   

n.(尤指中世纪北欧海盗的)故事，英雄传奇

参考例句：

• The saga of Flight 19 is probably the most repeated story about the Bermuda Triangle.飞行19中队的传说或许是有关百慕大三角最重复的故事。
• The novel depicts the saga of a family.小说描绘了一个家族的传奇故事。

13 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

14 disdain   

n.鄙视，轻视；v.轻视，鄙视，不屑

参考例句：

• Some people disdain labour.有些人轻视劳动。
• A great man should disdain flatterers.伟大的人物应鄙视献媚者。

15 sips   

n.小口喝，一小口的量( sip的名词复数 )v.小口喝，呷，抿( sip的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• You must administer them slowly, allowing the child to swallow between sips. 你应慢慢给药，使小儿在吸吮之间有充分的时间吞咽。 来自辞典例句
• Emission standards applicable to preexisting stationary sources appear in state implementation plans (SIPs). 在《州实施计划》中出现了固定污染的排放标准。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

16 hearty   

adj.热情友好的；衷心的；尽情的，纵情的

参考例句：

• After work they made a hearty meal in the worker's canteen.工作完了，他们在工人食堂饱餐了一顿。
• We accorded him a hearty welcome.我们给他热忱的欢迎。

17 eligibility   

n.合格，资格

参考例句：

• What are the eligibility requirements? 病人被选参加试验的要求是什么？ 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望
• Eligibility for HINARI access is based on gross national income (GNI). 进入HINARI获取计划是依据国民总收入来评定的。

18 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。

19 ivy   

n.常青藤，常春藤

参考例句：

• Her wedding bouquet consisted of roses and ivy.她的婚礼花篮包括玫瑰和长春藤。
• The wall is covered all over with ivy.墙上爬满了常春藤。

20 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

21 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。