NPR 2012-04-18

 From NPR News in Washington, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

 

The White House is reaffirming support for the head of the Secret Service, whose subordinates are at the center of a prostitution scandal and possible security breach¹ during President Obama's trip to Colombia last week. Press Secretary Jay Carney:

 

“The president has confidence in the director of the Secret Service. Director Sullivan acted quickly in response to this incident and is overseeing an investigation², as we speak, into the matter.”

 

Eleven agents have been placed on leave after they allegedly brought prostitutes back to their rooms in advance of President Obama's visit to Cartagena. Some members of the military are also under investigation for the scandal that has proved deeply embarrassing to the administration.

 

It was supposed to be the highest-level meetings between Israelis and Palestinians in nearly two years. But as NPR's Lourdes Garcia-Navarro explains from Jerusalem, the Palestinian prime minister has pulled out of the meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

 

It's another sign, as if one were needed, that peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians are unlikely to be revived anytime soon. Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad decided³ not to attend the meeting with the Israeli premier⁴, though no reason was disclosed. In his stead, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat had handed a letter from the Palestinians addressing their major concerns. The letter reportedly accuses Israel of undermining the Palestinian Authority, which rules in parts of the West Bank. The Palestinians still want settlement construction to be halted before they will return to talks. But far from slowing down Jewish building in the occupied West Bank, Netanyahu's government vowed⁵ this week to legalize settlement outposts that had been built on private Palestinian land. Lourdes Garcia-Navarro, NPR News, Jerusalem.

 

For a short while today, thousands of people across the Washington DC region were transfixed as they watched the iconic space shuttle Discovery pass above. It is now on the ground at Dulles International Airport in northern Virginia, where, as NPR's Nell Greenfieldboyce reports, workers will get the shuttle ready to be rolled into the Smithsonian later this week.

 

Discovery will be the first of NASA's retired⁷ shuttle fleet to become a museum exhibit. The big white spaceship was transported from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on top of a jumbo jet. The carrier airplane did loops around Washington DC, taking the shuttle right past famous landmarks⁸, like the Washington Monument and the Capitol building. Crowds of people gathered on rooftops, bridges and the National Mall, staring up at the sky and snapping photos. Once workers detach Discovery from its carrier plane, it will be ready to go to an annex⁹ of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum that's near the airport. A formal ceremony to welcome Discovery is planned for Thursday. Nell Greenfieldboyce, NPR News.

 

Dow is up more than 1.5%. 

 

This is NPR News.

 

Reuters news service reporting the US Appeals Court has ruled that the National Voting Rights Act supersedes¹⁰ Arizona's requirement that individuals who want to register to vote in federal elections must show proof of US citizenship¹¹.

 

The deadline for filing federal income tax returns is midnight tonight. However, tens of millions of Americans have not yet filed despite getting an extra two days this year beyond the usual April 15th day. NPR's Craig Windham reports the IRS says people who file at the last minute tend to make more mistakes.

 

Tax accountant Linden deMahler in Maryland says last-minute filers often make simple errors or fail to take all the deductions¹² to which they’re entitled.

 

“I call those golf returns. In other words, they probably have 18 holes in them that need to be fixed⁶, and most people are lazy, and they’ll file that return, and they’ll never go back and fill in those 18 holes.”

 

DeMahler advises people who have not yet finished their returns to request an extension of time to file instead.

 

“It's automatic until October 15th. So it gives you plenty of time to file.”

 

The extension request can be filed online at IRS.gov, but any tax owed is still due today. Craig Windham, NPR News, Washington.

 

The International Monetary¹³ Fund is apparently¹⁴ more optimistic about the global economy. The lending organization is now projecting a 3.5% growth, that in report that it released today. The IMF is encouraged by growth in the United States and EU efforts to head off financial disaster.

 

Here's the latest from Wall Street. The Dow is up 196 points at 13,117; NASDAQ is up more than 2% at 3,049; and the S&P 500 is up 22 points. 

1 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

2 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 premier   

adj.首要的；n.总理，首相

参考例句：

• The Irish Premier is paying an official visit to Britain.爱尔兰总理正在对英国进行正式访问。
• He requested that the premier grant him an internview.他要求那位总理接见他一次。

5 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

6 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

7 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

8 landmarks   

n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 )；目标；（标志重要阶段的）里程碑 ~ (in sth)；有历史意义的建筑物（或遗址）

参考例句：

• The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句

9 annex   

vt.兼并，吞并；n.附属建筑物

参考例句：

• It plans to annex an England company in order to enlarge the market.它计划兼并一家英国公司以扩大市场。
• The annex has been built on to the main building.主楼配建有附属的建筑物。

10 supersedes   

取代，接替( supersede的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The new supersedes the old. 新陈代谢。
• No sooner do you buy a computer than they bring out a new one which supersedes it. 你买电脑后不久他们就会推出新产品取代它。

11 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

12 deductions   

扣除( deduction的名词复数 )； 结论； 扣除的量； 推演

参考例句：

• Many of the older officers trusted agents sightings more than cryptanalysts'deductions. 许多年纪比较大的军官往往相信特务的发现，而不怎么相信密码分析员的推断。
• You know how you rush at things,jump to conclusions without proper deductions. 你知道你处理问题是多么仓促，毫无合适的演绎就仓促下结论。

13 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

14 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。