CNN 2012-03-21

 A woman was elected to the US Congress for the first time,96 years ago,today we'll meet the woman who served the longest time on Capital Hill,as our Women's History Month coverage¹ rolls on.

 

First up,though,we are looking at Puerto Rico as it gets some time in the US political spotligt.Puerto Rico is US territory.People who live there are US citizens.They don't get to vote in US presidential elections.But they are part of the nominating process.Yesterday,Puerto Rico held its Republican primary contest.There were 20 delegates up for grabs,and there's an interesting rule about how they get awarded.If one candidate gets more than 50% of the votes,he wins all of those delegates.No one get at least 50%,then the delegates are awarded proportionally based on how many votes each candidate gets.The results from Puerto Rico's primary were still coming in when we made the show yesterday.You can get the latest details by clicking on the CNN election center link and you'll find that in the spotlight² section on our homepage.

 

 

 

US time zones,we have them because on the date in history,in 1918,they were established by the Standard Time Act.

 

In 1932,the Sydney Harbor Bridge opened in Australia.More than a hundred and fifty thousands vehicles cross it everyday.

 

In 1953,the Oscars were broadcast on TV for the first time.Now tens of millions of Americans watch the show every year.

 

And in 2003,a coalition³ led by the United States launched the first bombings of the war in Iraq.

 

Officials in Pakistan are considering how their country works with the United States.Pakistan's Parliament is set to start debating this issue on Tuesday.After the 911 terrorist attacks in 2001,Pakistan promised to work with the US to fight terrorism.That included fighting the Taliban,which was based in Afghanistan,Pakistan's neighbor.

There has been some tension from both the US and Pakistan lately,though.US and coalition forces have raise concerns about terrorist activities and the growing Taliban presence in Pakistan.Osama bin⁴ Laden⁵ was found and killed in Pakistan,and Pakistani officials have spoken out against air-strikes carried out by coalition forces in their country.Last November,24 Pakistani soldiers were killed by one of those strikes along the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.And after that,the Pakistan set up a special committee to come up with some recommendations about how Pakistan should interact with the US,those suggestions are what the Pakistani Parliament will start debating tomorrow.

 

 

Today's Shout Out goes out to Ms.Holt's classes at,Westbrook Walnut⁶ Grove⁷ Schools in Westbrook,Minnesota.Who was the first woman elected to serve in the US Congress? Here we go.Was it,Shirley Chisholm,Hillary Clinton,Jeannette Rankin or Condoleezza Rice?You've got three seconds.Go.

 

 

Jeannette Rankin was elected to Congress in 1916 and then again in 1940.That's your answer and that's your Shout Out.

 

 

Jeannette Rankin served four years in Congress,two years each time she was elected.Barbara Mikulski has been elected to National Office ten times,five times in the US House of Representatives,five times in the US Senate.

 

 

Dana Bash caught up with senator Mikulski recently to talk about her experiences as the longest-serving-woman in Congress.

 

 

This is Senator Nacy Cathbell and me....

 

 

When Democrat⁸ Barbara Mikulski came to the senate in 1988,there was only one another woman,a Republican.

 

 

There hemline was a little different.The hair color,that's when they were too.

 

 

The two forged to bond a cross-party lines,now they are 17-female senators.

 

 

We have 5 Republican women,12 Democratic women.

 

 

Mikulski is now becoming the longest serving woman in Congressional history.To mark it,she invited three other women across parties and generations to her capital hideaway to talk to us about what's senate women call their zone of civility.

 

 

She hosts the dinner every quarter of all the women senators and obviously those dinners were highly confidential⁹.But we talked about...

 

 

..just among us girls...you can tell...(laughter)..

 

 

Well we talked but our families,and our concerns and our lives,sometimes we talk about we are working on,but it's verycollegial setting.

 

 

This subject is especially poignant¹⁰ for Olympia Snowe,leaving the Senate because it's so polarized.

 

 

We are all a team as women.We may not agree on every issue but that's not the point.We know how to work together,and the give and take of it,to achieve results and that's what frustrates¹¹ us many times we get together for dinner.One thing we can let you in on.

 

 

Spill it.

 

 

Is that you know,we like to get results.

 

 

They differ everything from taxes to energy policy,but generally agree on women's issues.Ironically,this dean of the senate women learn from a old boys' network that no longer exists here.Get to know each other personally or better professionally.

 

 

I won't always be here but I hope the legacy¹² of civility that I've worked with other women to create will remain.

 

 

Dana Bash,CNN,Capital Hill.

1 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

2 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

3 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

4 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

5 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

6 walnut   

n.胡桃，胡桃木，胡桃色，茶色

参考例句：

• Walnut is a local specialty here.核桃是此地的土特产。
• The stool comes in several sizes in walnut or mahogany.凳子有几种尺寸，材质分胡桃木和红木两种。

7 grove   

n.林子，小树林，园林

参考例句：

• On top of the hill was a grove of tall trees.山顶上一片高大的树林。
• The scent of lemons filled the grove.柠檬香味充满了小树林。

8 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。

9 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

10 poignant   

adj.令人痛苦的，辛酸的，惨痛的

参考例句：

• His lyrics are as acerbic and poignant as they ever have been.他的歌词一如既往的犀利辛辣。
• It is especially poignant that he died on the day before his wedding.他在婚礼前一天去世了，这尤其令人悲恸。

11 frustrates   

v.使不成功( frustrate的第三人称单数 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• What frustrates him is that there's too little money to spend on the project. 使他懊恼的是，可用于这个项目的资金太少。
• His trouble is that he frustrates much easily. 他的毛病是很容易泄气。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

12 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。