美国国家公共电台 NPR Accused Of Accepting Lavish Trips And Gifts, Sen. Menendez Goes On Trial

 

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

The federal corruption¹ trial of New Jersey²'s senior senator starts tomorrow. Democrat³ Bob Menendez faces a dozen charges for his alleged⁴ role in a bribery⁵ scheme, a scheme involving one of his close friends. The senator denies wrongdoing, and as Joe Hernandez from member station WHYY reports, the outcome may turn on a Supreme⁶ Court decision in a different corruption trial from another state.

JOE HERNANDEZ, BYLINE⁷: From the moment the indictment⁸ was handed down in 2015, Senator Bob Menendez has been defiant⁹.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

BOB MENENDEZ: I'm angry and ready to fight because today contradicts my public service career and my entire life.

HERNANDEZ: Tomorrow the two-term senator will finally have his day in court to contest the 12 counts of conspiracy¹⁰, bribery and fraud charges he's facing. Prosecutors¹¹ at the Justice Department are accusing Menendez of using his public office to help friend and Florida eye doctor Salomon Melgen. They say Menendez intervened on Melgen's behalf to sort out a shipping¹² contract, secure immigrant visas for Melgen's girlfriends and try to settle a multimillion-dollar Medicare billing dispute involving Melgen's ophthalmology practice.

In return, prosecutors say, Melgen flew Menendez around on his private jet, paid for trips to Paris and the Dominican Republic and donated hundreds of thousands of dollars in political contributions. Menendez denies the charges. He says he was only doing what he would do for any constituent¹³.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MENENDEZ: I'm angry because prosecutors at the Justice Department don't know the difference between friendship and corruption and have chosen to twist my duties as a senator and my friendship into something that is improper¹⁴.

HERNANDEZ: But prosecutors will be facing an uphill battle at trial. A Supreme Court decision last year overturned the guilty verdict of former Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell who was convicted of receiving gifts in exchange for promoting a donor's dietary supplement. The justices said McDonnell didn't break the law simply by setting up meetings. He would have had to take what's known in government jargon¹⁵ as an official act. Here's former federal Judge Stephen Orlofsky.

STEPHEN ORLOFSKY: For example, if a senator received a gift of a Rolex in exchange for voting a particular way on a bill pending¹⁶ before Congress, that would be an official act.

HERNANDEZ: Menendez's defense¹⁷ team will argue he never did that, and may get a boost from the McDonnell decision.

ORLOFSKY: It narrows the grounds on which a bribery conviction can be obtained. So they have to prove more, for example, than setting up meetings.

HERNANDEZ: Menendez has risen through the ranks of the Senate. He became the first Latino to chair the Senate Foreign Relations Committee before stepping down due to the 2015 indictment, which is why the charges come at a bad time for Democrats¹⁸. President Trump's effort to scrap¹⁹ the Affordable²⁰ Care Act failed by only one vote in the Senate. But what happens to Menendez's seat if he's convicted and resigns remains²¹ unknown. Republican Governor Chris Christie may get to appoint a replacement²², but if the seat opens after January, New Jersey will have a new governor who may appoint a Democrat.

Still, supporters say the larger issue at stake is Menendez's legacy²³. The son of Cuban immigrants, Menendez's political rise has made him a local hero to the Cuban community in northern New Jersey. Cuban immigrant Sergio Gonzalez lives in Union City, where Menendez served as mayor.

SERGIO GONZALEZ: (Through interpreter) Menendez is a nice person. What happened is there are a lot of people who wanted to get rid of him, to be done with him. He doesn't deserve this. He's a good man, a man that has always done for Cubans and fought for Cubans.

HERNANDEZ: With his trial starting tomorrow, Menendez will be taking on a new fight all together. For NPR News, I'm Joe Hernandez.

1 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

2 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

3 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。

4 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

5 bribery   

n.贿络行为，行贿，受贿

参考例句：

• FBI found out that the senator committed bribery.美国联邦调查局查明这个参议员有受贿行为。
• He was charged with bribery.他被指控受贿。

6 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

7 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。

8 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。

9 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。

10 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

11 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

12 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

13 constituent   

n.选民；成分，组分；adj.组成的，构成的

参考例句：

• Sugar is the main constituent of candy.食糖是糖果的主要成分。
• Fibre is a natural constituent of a healthy diet.纤维是健康饮食的天然组成部分。

14 improper   

adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的

参考例句：

• Short trousers are improper at a dance.舞会上穿短裤不成体统。
• Laughing and joking are improper at a funeral.葬礼时大笑和开玩笑是不合适的。

15 jargon   

n.术语，行话

参考例句：

• They will not hear critics with their horrible jargon.他们不愿意听到评论家们那些可怕的行话。
• It is important not to be overawed by the mathematical jargon.要紧的是不要被数学的术语所吓倒.

16 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

17 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

18 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

20 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

21 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。

22 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

23 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。