美联社新闻一分钟 2007-01-20（在线收听）

1. Residents in the Midwest are getting ready for another blast of winter. A storm is moving across the region. It's expected to dump at least another 6 inches on top of the snow and ice that's already on the ground.

2. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says it's too soon to tell if President Bush's plan to increase troop levels will work in Iraq. Gates made an unannounced visit to Baghdad today, where he met with US troops and military leaders.

3. Former congressman Bob Ney has been sentenced to more than 2 years in prison for his role in the Jack Abramoff scandal. The Republican from Ohio accepted golf and gambling trips, tickets to sporting events, free meals and campaign donations arranged by Abramoff and his associates.

4. It turns out the politics, at least in Taiwan, is a full contact sport. Members got into a brawl Friday over a proposal to change the country's Central Election Commission.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. unannounced: adj.
If someone arrives or does something unannounced, they do it unexpectedly and without anyone having being told about it beforehand.

2. contact sport: n-count
A contact sport is a sport, such as football, hockey, or boxing that involves physical contact between players as part of normal play.

3. brawl: n-count
A brawl is a rough or violent fight.