美国国家公共电台 NPR Sen. McCain's Absence Looms Over Senate

 

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

Republican Senator John McCain has not stepped foot in the Capitol this year. His brain cancer treatment and related health problems have kept him back home in Arizona. NPR congressional correspondent Susan Davis reports McCain's absence is weighing heavily on the Senate this month.

SUSAN DAVIS, BYLINE¹: Even 2,000 miles away from Washington, John McCain can still make news. In a statement, he announced his opposition² to CIA director nominee³ Gina Haspel, saying her refusal to acknowledge torture's immorality⁴ is disqualifying. As the Senate's moral authority on the topic, McCain's call to reject her is affecting the calculation on whether or not the nomination⁵ can survive.

JEFF FLAKE⁶: Oh, I obviously share his views on torture, and I always have. So his views mean a lot.

DAVIS: That's McCain's fellow Arizona Republican senator, Jeff Flake. He's undecided on Haspel, and McCain's opposition is a factor in his own decision-making. Maine Independent Senator Angus King is with McCain in opposition to Haspel. He said McCain can still influence Senate debate from afar.

ANGUS KING: It may be if he were here personally perhaps he could be talking to some of his colleagues directly. But his statement was so clear. It was hard to miss the point that he made.

DAVIS: Even senators who support Haspel's nomination, like Louisiana Republican John Kennedy, said they still weigh McCain's point of view in these debates.

JOHN KENNEDY: Look; when John McCain talks, I listen. Sometimes I agree with him, sometimes I don't, but I always listen.

DAVIS: Later this month, the Senate Armed Services Committee will take up McCain's prized jewel, the annual defense⁷ bill that sets the priorities for the Pentagon. McCain is the committee chairman, but he's not expected to return to shepherd the bill through the Senate. The top Democrat⁸ on the committee, Rhode Island Senator Jack⁹ Reed, said they're moving forward in the same bipartisan manner on defense policy that McCain demanded as chairman.

JACK REED: Because of him we're going to do our best to do the job he would want us to do, which is to make sure we can authorize¹⁰ legislation for the forces and do it in a bipartisan-principled way.

DAVIS: McCain's health is a matter of constant speculation¹¹ on Capitol Hill. One of his best friends, South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, spent two days in Arizona with him earlier this week.

LINDSEY GRAHAM: He's stabilizing¹². Don't read - don't believe what you read in the paper. I was concerned when I went. I'm thinking now about my next trip. No talking about funerals.

DAVIS: The end of the month is a politically sensitive deadline in Arizona. May 30 is a cutoff to have a special election this year if the Senate seat becomes vacant. After that date, the governor would appoint a senator to serve until a 2020 special election. Graham tamped¹³ down on speculation that McCain's health could force him to resign soon, but quipped that they weren't planning his re-election campaign either.

GRAHAM: We're not at 2022 yet, but we're - I'll let you know.

DAVIS: Instead, Graham described McCain as physically¹⁴ recovering and mentally intact, cracking wise as the two bonded¹⁵ over McCain's favorite movie.

GRAHAM: You want to figure out John McCain, watch "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance." That tells you all you need to know about me and him.

DAVIS: "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" is an old Western starring John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart. In it, a legendary¹⁶ senator returns home for a funeral, and a reporter covering the story ultimately realizes the senator's career is built on a myth. The senator has done so much good, the reporter tosses his notes in the fire, choosing not to destroy the image of a popular politician, telling him this...

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE")

CARLETON YOUNG: (As Maxwell Scott) When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.

DAVIS: As usual, John McCain knows how to make a statement. Susan Davis, NPR News, Washington.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

1 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。

2 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

3 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。

4 immorality   

n. 不道德, 无道义

参考例句：

• All the churchmen have preached against immorality. 所有牧师都讲道反对不道德的行为。
• Where the European sees immorality and lawlessness, strict law rules in reality. 在欧洲人视为不道德和无规则的地方，事实上都盛行着一种严格的规则。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源

5 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。

6 flake   

v.使成薄片；雪片般落下；n.薄片

参考例句：

• Drain the salmon,discard the skin,crush the bones and flake the salmon with a fork.将鲑鱼沥干，去表皮，粉碎鱼骨并用餐叉子将鱼肉切成小薄片状。
• The paint's beginning to flake.油漆开始剥落了。

7 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。

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 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。

10 authorize   

v.授权，委任；批准，认可

参考例句：

• He said that he needed to get his supervisor to authorize my refund.他说必须让主管人员批准我的退款。
• Only the President could authorize the use of the atomic bomb.只有总统才能授权使用原子弹。

11 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

12 stabilizing   

n.稳定化处理[退火]v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The disulfide bridges might then be viewed primarily as stabilizing components. 二硫桥可以被看作是初级的稳定因素。 来自辞典例句
• These stabilizing design changes are usually not desirable for steady-state operation. 这些增加稳定性的设计改变通常不太符合稳态工作的要求。 来自辞典例句

13 tamped   

v.捣固( tamp的过去式和过去分词 )；填充；（用炮泥）封炮眼口；夯实

参考例句：

• The poets, once so praised, are tamped unceremoniously together in our textbooks, in one curt chapter. 那些名噪一时的诗人，在今天的教科书里，已被毫不客气地挤在一起，列为短短的一章。 来自辞典例句
• They tamped down the earth around the apple tree. 他们把苹果树周围的泥土夯实。 来自互联网

14 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

15 bonded   

n.有担保的，保税的，粘合的

参考例句：

• The whisky was taken to bonded warehouses at Port Dundee.威士忌酒已送到邓迪港的保稅仓库。
• This adhesive must be applied to both surfaces which are to be bonded together.要粘接的两个面都必须涂上这种黏合剂。

16 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。