NPR美国国家公共电台 NPR 2015-04-19

 President Obama today urged Senate Republicans to stop stalling and confirm his nominee¹ for attorney general. NPR’s Scott Horsley calls the long delay in confirming Loretta Lynch example of Senate dysfunction that’s gone too far. 

The White House complains Loretta Lynch has now waited longer for a Senate vote on her nomination² than the last seven attorney general nominees³ combined. Lynch herself enjoys widespread support, but the vote’s been held up by unrelated fights including a question over abortion⁴ funding and a bill designed to combat human trafficking. At a White House news conference, a frustrated⁵ President Obama cried “enough”.

“This is embarrassing. A process like this.”

Obama notes Lynch has already been confirmed twice by the Senate for other jobs, including her current post as U.S. attorney in Brooklyn. Scott Horsley, NPR News, the White House. 

 

Officials in Boston today detailed⁶ security procedures for the upcoming running of the Boston Marathon. The tightened⁷ security on the second anniversary of the deadly bombing attack that killed three people and injured more than 260 others includes limiting the number of spectators along the 26.2-mile course and banning certain items from being carried. Police Commissioner⁸ William Evans says those planning to attend the event this year should travel light.

“We are not prohibiting, but we are asking everyone not to bring backpacks, large shoulder bags, suitcases or coolers. If you are going to bring those items, as you go to the checkpoints, you are going to be asked to open those items.”

There’ll also be more police presence for Monday’s running of the marathon. The event draws as many as 500,000 spectators. One of the two men who carried out the 2013 bombing, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, was found guilty last week. 

 

Leaders of the so-called G20 countries warned today that global economic recovery has been threatened by volatility⁹ in the financial markets. NPR’s Jim Zarroli reports they issued a statement at the spring meetings of the International Monetary¹⁰ Fund and the World Bank. 

The G20 represents the largest and most powerful economies in the world. In a statement issued after one of their meetings, the finance ministers of those countries said the economic recovery has been uneven¹¹ in the world. The United States has done relatively¹² well and the Federal Reserve is contemplating¹³ interest rates hikes. But growth has been weak in Europe and Japan, and some advanced economies are essentially¹⁴ paying negative interest rates. The statements said diverging¹⁵ interest rate policy could lead to volatility in the markets. And that together with high debt levels and low inflation could undermine growth. Jim Zarroli, NPR News, Washington.

 

The index designed to predict the future direction of the U.S. economy three to six months down on the road moved higher for a third straight month. The Conference Board says its leading index was up 0.2% in March. 

 

Stocks turned sharply lower at week’s end. The Dow was down 279 points to 17,826. The Nasdaq fell 75 points. 

 

This is NPR. 

 

The Ohio man accused of visiting a terrorist training camp in Syria in play to attack either a U.S. military installation or prison has pleaded not guilty today. Being at Federal Court in Columbus, Ohio, the man, Abdirahman Sheik Mohamud, answering to charges of supporting a terrorist group and making a false statement involving international terrorism. According to federal indictment¹⁶, Mohamud talked about going to a military base in Texas after his return to the U.S. and killing¹⁷ soldiers. 

 

A website often used for statements from the self-proclaimed Islamic State says the group is responsible for a car bombing in northern Iraq that has killed at least three people. NPR’s Alice Fordham reports Isis also claims it’s responsible for an explosion in Irbil today that happened outside the U.S. consulate¹⁸. 

When the car detonated in the city of Irbil, it was just outside the gate to the U.S. consulate on the street of a Christian¹⁹ neighborhood. A State Department spokeswoman says no embassy staff were wounded in the attack, but Iraqi security officials say there were deaths and injuries among people on the street, which has a number of popular cafes. Security in Irbil is usually better than the rest of Iraq and car bombings are rare, whereas in the capital Baghdad more than two dozen people were killed in car bombs Friday. Alice Fordham, NPR News.  

 

Three Western African countries hearted by the Ebola crisis have unveiled an $8bn recovery package. They are asking for international support to help rebuild healthcare systems, feed their people and create new jobs. In parentage of the Marshall Plan put in place to rebuild Europe after World War II, leaders of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone say half the money would be needed within the next two years. The Ebola outbreak claimed more than 10,000 lives. 

 

I’m Jack²⁰ Speer, NPR News.

1 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

2 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

3 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

4 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

5 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

7 tightened   

收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧

参考例句：

• The rope holding the boat suddenly tightened and broke. 系船的绳子突然绷断了。
• His index finger tightened on the trigger but then relaxed again. 他的食指扣住扳机，然后又松开了。

8 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

9 volatility   

n.挥发性，挥发度，轻快，（性格）反复无常

参考例句：

• That was one reason why volatility was so low last year.这也是去年波动性如此低的原因之一。
• Yet because volatility remained low for so long,disaster myopia prevailed.然而，由于相当长的时间里波动性小，灾难短视就获胜了。

10 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。

11 uneven   

adj.不平坦的，不规则的，不均匀的

参考例句：

• The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
• The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。

12 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

13 contemplating   

深思，细想，仔细考虑( contemplate的现在分词 )； 注视，凝视； 考虑接受（发生某事的可能性）； 深思熟虑，沉思，苦思冥想

参考例句：

• You're too young to be contemplating retirement. 你考虑退休还太年轻。
• She stood contemplating the painting. 她站在那儿凝视那幅图画。

14 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

15 diverging   

分开( diverge的现在分词 )； 偏离； 分歧； 分道扬镳

参考例句：

• Plants had gradually evolved along diverging and converging pathways. 植物是沿着趋异和趋同两种途径逐渐演化的。
• With member-country bond yields now diverging, 'it's a fragmented set of markets. 但随着成员国债券收益率之差扩大，市场已经分割开来。

16 indictment   

n.起诉；诉状

参考例句：

• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。
• They issued an indictment against them.他们起诉了他们。

17 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

18 consulate   

n.领事馆

参考例句：

• The Spanish consulate is the large white building opposite the bank.西班牙领事馆是银行对面的那栋高大的白色建筑物。
• The American consulate was a magnificent edifice in the centre of Bordeaux.美国领事馆是位于波尔多市中心的一座宏伟的大厦。

19 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

20 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。