2006年VOA标准英语-Analysts Say Lieberman Defeat Indicates Iraq Wi

By Jim Malone
Washington
09 August 2006

The primary defeat of veteran Democratic Senator Joseph Lieberman in Connecticut strongly suggests that the Iraq war will be a central issue in the November midterm congressional elections.

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Incumbent² party-endorsed Democratic US Senator Joseph  Lieberman acknowledges the crowd with his wife after he was defeated in a primary by Ned Lamont 
  
It was only six years ago that Joe Lieberman was Al Gore's vice⁴ presidential running mate in the 2000 presidential election.

After three terms in the Senate, Lieberman had built a reputation as one of the leading moderates in the Democratic Party, an advocate for a strong defense⁵ and an aggressive approach to the war on terror.

But Lieberman angered liberal Democrats⁶ in his home state with his strong support for the war in Iraq and what they perceived as closeness to President Bush.

Larry Sabato directs the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia.

"This is a big deal," said Mr. Sabato.  "Rarely do senators lose their own party primaries and it is extremely rare for a national Democrat¹, who has been the party's vice presidential nominee⁷, to be ousted⁸."

Lieberman's defeat came at the hands of political novice⁹ Ned Lamont.  Lamont supports a deadline for the withdrawal¹⁰ of U.S. troops from Iraq, something Lieberman opposes.  He has also accused Lieberman of being a cheerleader for President Bush and urged Connecticut Democrats to send an anti-war message to the rest of the country by voting against Lieberman.

US Senate nominee Ned Lamont   
  
"Stay the course.  That is not a winning strategy in Iraq and it is not a winning strategy for America,"   Mr. Lamont's ad said.

Some prominent Democrats are now rushing to endorse³ Lamont in the November election, including Senate Democratic leader Harry¹¹ Reid of Nevada.

Lieberman says he will run as an independent candidate in November, pitting him against Democrat Lamont and a little known Republican contender.

Lieberman also told NBC television that he will not change his view on Iraq.

"I think it would be a disaster for us, our troops, Iraq and the whole Middle East if we did what my opponent wants to do and pull all of our troops out by a deadline certain," Senator Lieberman said.

Analyst¹² Larry Sabato says Lieberman paid a price among liberal Democrats, because of his willingness to support the Bush administration on Iraq.

"For Joe Lieberman, this was a perfect storm," he explained.  "He comes from a heavily Democratic state that is very strongly anti-Bush and very strongly anti-Iraq.  And yet oddly, as a Democratic senator from that state, he stood with Bush and has consistently been with Bush on Iraq."

Political experts say the Lieberman defeat is a strong indication that the war in Iraq will be a central issue in the November congressional elections.

Thomas Mann of the Brookings Institution appeared on VOA's Talk to America program.

"I see actually the country becoming very discouraged by developments in Iraq, worried about having our men and women of the armed services put in the middle of a civil war, uncertain about exactly what to do but wanting to see an end to this at some point in the not too distant future," said Mann.

Republicans may have cause to worry in the wake of the Lieberman defeat.  Public disenchantment over the war could help Democrats pick up the 15 seats they need to win back control of the House of Representatives or the six seats required to take over the Senate.

Republicans have controlled both houses of Congress since 1994.

But many analysts¹³ also see the Lieberman result as further proof of a deep split within the Democratic Party over Iraq, between liberals who want to leave quickly and moderates who fear a speedy pullout of troops would result in further chaos¹⁴.

John Fortier is with the American Enterprise Institute in Washington.  He believes the debate over Iraq within the Democratic Party will continue to play out well into the next presidential campaign two years from now.

"As for the 2008 race, it definitely shows that there is a strong anti-war feeling in the Democratic Party and how that translates into the presidential election will be an important story," said Fortier.

Iraq will not be the only election issue in November.  Public concerns over the economy and high domestic fuel prices are expected to get a lot of attention, as well as other domestic issues like health care and illegal immigration.

1 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。

2 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

3 endorse   

vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意

参考例句：

• No one is foolish enough to endorse it.没有哪个人会傻得赞成它。
• I fully endorse your opinions on this subject.我完全拥护你对此课题的主张。

4 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。

5 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。

6 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》

7 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。

8 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

9 novice   

adj.新手的，生手的

参考例句：

• As a novice writer,this is something I'm interested in.作为初涉写作的人，我对此很感兴趣。
• She realized that she was a novice.她知道自己初出茅庐。

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 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

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 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

14 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。