2006年VOA标准英语-Bush Tries to Shore Up US Domestic Support

By Jim Malone
Washington
13 January 2006

President Bush continued his efforts this week to rebuild public support for his handling of Iraq with speeches this week in Washington and Kentucky. But, those Democrats¹ who oppose him on Iraq are not backing down.

----------------------------------------------

George Bush  
  

Iraq figures to be a major issue in the November congressional elections, and Mr. Bush is trying to improve Republican prospects² by convincing the public that the United States must stay in Iraq and finish the job.

But the president also had words for Democrats who oppose him on Iraq, warning them not to engage in what he called irresponsible debate in the months ahead.

"But one way people can help as we are coming down the pike in the 2006 elections is to remember the effect that rhetoric³ can have on our troops in harms way and the effect that rhetoric can have in emboldening⁴ or weakening an enemy," he said.

Democrats remain split on Iraq but many of them disagree with the president's suggestion to tamp⁵ down the debate over Iraq.

Democratic Congressman⁶ Jim Moran of Virginia discussed the issue during a recent town hall meeting with some of his constituents⁷.

"There is nothing more patriotic⁸, nothing more American than engaging in a debate, even an intense, heated, contentious⁹ debate over the future our nation should take," he said.

So far, only a few Democrats have supported the call by Pennsylvania Congressman John Murtha for a speedy, phased withdrawal¹⁰ of U.S. troops from Iraq.
 

Nancy Pelosi (file photo)   
  
But one of them is the leader of Democrats in the House of Representatives, Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi of California.

"Under the president's plan we will have troops there for a long time to come in harm's way," she said. Again, loss of life, loss of limb - [this is] tragic¹¹ for our country."

President Bush's public approval ratings dropped dramatically during 2005, largely due to bad news from Iraq. In recent weeks, those poll numbers have shown a slight improvement.

University of Virginia political analyst¹² Larry Sabato says that while the public continues to have doubts about the president's handling of Iraq, they also appear unwilling¹³ to support a quick withdrawal of American troops.

"They do not want to cut and run," he said. "That is a phrase used by the Bush administration and that phrase sells."

Many Republicans fear that they will lose congressional seats if the public continues to hold a negative view of Iraq at election time in November.

Analyst Stuart Rothenberg told a Washington audience this week that is a legitimate¹⁴ concern.

But Rothenberg also says the Democrats have their own problems in convincing the public that they are strong enough to deal with national security and foreign policy issues.

"The war in Iraq has hurt the president," he said. "The president's credibility has been hurt by the war, but also by other things, [Hurricane] Katrina, ethics¹⁵ issues and domestic surveillance. In terms of the public's confidence and trust in the White House, it is significantly down. But I am not entirely¹⁶ sure that the Democrats as a party have a reservoir of support or the credibility to fully¹⁷ take advantage of."

Jack¹⁸ Abramoff (right) with his lawyer (2004 file photo)   
  
Other issues besides Iraq could play a major role in the November elections, including the general state of the economy and the budding corruption¹⁹ scandal involving once-powerful Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his links with several members of Congress from both parties.

"Elections tend to be about mood," said political analyst Stuart Rothenberg. "Does the public want change or is the public satisfied with the status quo?"

All 435 House seats are at stake in November along with 33 of the 100 Senate seats. In addition, 36 of the 50 states will hold elections for governor.

1 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》

2 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

3 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

4 emboldening   

v.鼓励，使有胆量( embolden的现在分词 )

参考例句：

5 tamp   

v.捣实，砸实

参考例句：

• Then I tamp down the soil with the back of a rake.然后我用耙子的背将土壤拍实。
• Philpott tamped a wad of tobacco into his pipe.菲尔波特往烟斗里塞了一卷碎烟叶。

6 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

7 constituents   

n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素

参考例句：

• She has the full support of her constituents. 她得到本区选民的全力支持。
• Hydrogen and oxygen are the constituents of water. 氢和氧是水的主要成分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 patriotic   

adj.爱国的，有爱国心的

参考例句：

• His speech was full of patriotic sentiments.他的演说充满了爱国之情。
• The old man is a patriotic overseas Chinese.这位老人是一位爱国华侨。

9 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

10 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

11 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

12 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

13 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

14 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

15 ethics   

n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准

参考例句：

• The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
• Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。

16 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

17 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

18 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。

19 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。