IN THE NEWS - President Bush Nominated for Second Term

IN THE NEWS - President Bush Nominated for Second Term
By Avi Arditti

Broadcast: Saturday, September 04, 2004

This is Steve Ember with In the News, in VOA Special English.

Republicans nominated George W. Bush this week for a second term as president. The election is November second. Mister Bush says he is running for president with a clear plan "to build a safer world and a more hopeful America."

He accepted the nomination¹ Thursday night at the Republican National Convention in New York City. Vice² President Dick Cheney accepted his nomination the night before. Mister Bush said that he is a "compassionate³ conservative." He says he believes "government should help people improve their lives, not try to run their lives."

In his speech, Mister Bush also criticized the Democratic candidates for president and vice president, Senators John Kerry and John Edwards. He said they want to increase taxes and federal spending, yet they voted against money to support American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Senator Kerry has said in the past that he did not want to increase the federal deficit⁴. He wanted Congress to end the president's tax cuts and use the additional tax money instead.

Shortly after the president spoke⁵, Senator Kerry made a statement. He said: "I will not have my commitment to defend this country questioned by those who refused to serve when they could have, and by those who have misled the nation into Iraq."

The senator spoke at an appearance in Ohio, one of the states where the race is especially close. One of the major issues in this campaign is national security. Mister Bush said: "We are staying on the offensive -- striking terrorists abroad -- so we do not have to face them here at home. And we will prevail."

The Republican convention took place six kilometers from where two hijacked⁶ planes hit the World Trade Center on September eleventh, two thousand one. "The freedom of many, and the future security of our nation, now depend on us," the president said.

 
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Mister Bush also told Americans that the economy is growing again and creating jobs because of his tax cuts. But he said many systems "were created for the world of yesterday, not tomorrow." If re-elected, he promised to lead an effort to simplify tax laws. He also promised changes in the systems of health coverage⁸, retirement⁹ plans and worker training. He said these changes would permit citizens to make their own choices and seek their own dreams.

Thousands of protesters held a week of demonstrations¹⁰ in New York City against the Iraq war and other administration policies. Police arrested almost one thousand eight hundred people. All the prisoners were supposed to be freed before the president's speech. A judge threatened to punish the city by making it pay a fine when some of the protesters were still in jail.

After the convention, Mister Bush traveled Friday and Saturday to campaign in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Wisconsin and Iowa.

In the News, in VOA Special English, was written by Avi Arditti. This is Steve Ember.

1 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。

2 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

3 compassionate   

adj.有同情心的，表示同情的

参考例句：

• She is a compassionate person.她是一个有同情心的人。
• The compassionate judge gave the young offender a light sentence.慈悲的法官从轻判处了那个年轻罪犯。

4 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

7 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

8 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

9 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

10 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。