2007年VOA标准英语-US Politicians Kerry, Gingrich Debate Global Wa

By Jim Malone
Washington
10 April 2007

Global warming has become, if you will pardon the expression, a hot topic in Washington in recent weeks. Last month, former Vice¹ President Al Gore² warned the U.S. Congress about the effects of climate change. On Tuesday, two other prominent U.S. politicians, one a Democrat³, the other a Republican, debated the issue and what to do about it. VOA National correspondent Jim Malone has more from Washington.

Newt Gingrich, right, and John Kerry, take part in a debate on global warming on Capitol Hill in Washington,10 Apr 2007

It was billed as a global warming debate between Democratic Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts and the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Newt Gingrich of Georgia.

Kerry has recently written a book on the environment and says the United States must take a leading role in setting standards to limit carbon dioxide emissions⁴ into the atmosphere that scientists say cause global warming.

"So I believe that if you show the leadership in the United States and set this standard, we will have the clean hands and the leverage⁵ that we need to be able to go to India and China and bring the world together," he said. "They are waiting for our leadership and that is what is critical."

Former Congressman⁶ Gingrich agrees that global warming is an issue that demands urgent attention, a view not all conservatives share.

"The evidence is sufficient that we should move towards the most effective possible steps to reduce carbon loading of the atmosphere," he said.

"And do it urgently, now," said Kerry.

"And do it urgently, yes," added Gingrich

But Gingrich disagrees with Kerry on how to tackle the problem of global warming.

Kerry insists that government take a leading role in setting new environmental standards, including limits on carbon dioxide emissions for private industry.

Gingrich prefers a voluntary approach including economic incentives⁷, like tax credits, that would encourage change on the part of businesses and consumers.

"The morning you provide the incentives, there will be 50,000 entrepreneurs figuring out how to get the money," he said. "The morning you try to do it by regulation, there will be 50,000 entrepreneurs hiring a lawyer to fight you. It is a fundamentally different model."

Senator Kerry takes issue with what he called a strict market approach to solving the problem. Kerry says that, historically, environmental action has come about through government involvement. He cites the environmental movement that developed in the U.S. in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

"That is when we passed the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Marine⁸ Mammal Protection Act, the Coastal⁹ Zone Management Act and that is when Richard Nixon signed the EPA [Environmental Protection Agency] into existence because people rose up and said we want something different, not because the marketplace was doing it voluntarily," he said.

Kerry and Gingrich agree on the importance of encouraging industrial giants like China and India to take part in climate change efforts.

But again, Gingrich warns that it would be better to focus on economic incentives to induce change rather than on government or international mandates¹⁰.

"I believe if we can accelerate enough innovation, we dramatically increase the likelihood of China and India moving towards green prosperity," he said. If you truly believe that [the next] 10 years is decisive, no strategy that does not bring in China and India works."

The unusual Kerry-Gingrich debate on climate change was held in Washington D.C. and sponsored by New York University, The Brookings Institution and the Rand Corporation, both public policy research organizations.

1 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。

2 gore   

n.凝血，血污；v.（动物）用角撞伤，用牙刺破；缝以补裆；顶

参考例句：

• The fox lay dying in a pool of gore.狐狸倒在血泊中奄奄一息。
• Carruthers had been gored by a rhinoceros.卡拉瑟斯被犀牛顶伤了。

3 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。

4 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

5 leverage   

n.力量，影响；杠杆作用，杠杆的力量

参考例句：

• We'll have to use leverage to move this huge rock.我们不得不借助杠杆之力来移动这块巨石。
• He failed in the project because he could gain no leverage. 因为他没有影响力，他的计划失败了。

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 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

8 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

9 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

10 mandates   

托管（mandate的第三人称单数形式）

参考例句：

• Individual mandates would require all people to purchase health insurance. 个人托管要求所有人都要购买健康保险。
• While I agree with those benefits, I'm not a supporter of mandates. 我同意上述好处，我不是授权软件的支持者。