VOA标准英语2008年-Bush Renews Call for Expanded Domestic Oil Dril

President Bush is again urging Congress to authorize¹ expanded domestic oil drilling in order to combat record-high gasoline prices. VOA's Michael Bowman reports from the White House, where Mr. Bush spoke² after a cabinet meeting, one day after speaking to workers at a factory in Ohio on the same topic.

Despite a dip in global oil prices during the past week, Americans are paying more than twice as much for gasoline as they did just a few years ago.

President Bush says the price spike³ is the result of basic economic forces: global demand for oil that is growing faster than the supply.

Speaking from the Rose Garden, Mr. Bush said there is a clear solution.

"To reduce pressure on prices, we need to increase the supply of oil - especially here at home," said President Bush.

For weeks, the president has urged the Democrat-controlled Congress to rescind⁴ a ban on new off-shore drilling, which he says could provide as much as 10 years worth of oil at current U.S. consumption levels.

"The time for action is now," said Mr. Bush. "This is a difficult period for millions of American families. Every extra dollar they have to spend because of high gas prices is one less dollar they can use to put food on the table, pay the rent or meet [pay] their mortgages. The American people are rightly frustrated⁵ by the failure of Democratic leaders in Congress to enact⁶ common-sense solutions like the development of oil resources on the outer-continental shelf."

Democratic congressional leaders point out that, according to petroleum⁷ experts, it would take a decade or more before new oil exploration yielded significant supplies of crude, and that the actual impact on gasoline prices would likely be marginal.

Instead, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has urged the administration to tap into America's stockpile of emergency fuel, known as the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, while focusing on conservation and alternative sources of energy.

President Bush says draining the emergency stockpile makes no sense when new sources of oil can be exploited at home. Mr. Bush has also endorsed⁸ higher fuel efficiency standards for automobiles⁹ and greater investment in alternative energy.

Polls show Americans rate economic issues, including high energy prices, as their top concerns.

 

 

1 authorize   

v.授权，委任；批准，认可

参考例句：

• He said that he needed to get his supervisor to authorize my refund.他说必须让主管人员批准我的退款。
• Only the President could authorize the use of the atomic bomb.只有总统才能授权使用原子弹。

2 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。

3 spike   

n.长钉，钉鞋；v.以大钉钉牢，使...失效

参考例句：

• The spike pierced the receipts and held them in order.那个钉子穿过那些收据并使之按顺序排列。
• They'll do anything to spike the guns of the opposition.他们会使出各种手段来挫败对手。

4 rescind   

v.废除，取消

参考例句：

• They accepted his advice and rescinded the original plan.他们听从了他的劝告，撤销了原计划。
• Trade Union leaders have demanded the government rescind the price rise.工会领导已经要求政府阻止价格上涨。

5 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。

7 petroleum   

n.原油，石油

参考例句：

• The Government of Iran advanced the price of petroleum last week.上星期伊朗政府提高了石油价格。
• The purpose of oil refinery is to refine crude petroleum.炼油厂的主要工作是提炼原油。

8 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》