VOA标准英语2009年-Bush Defends Presidency in Farewell Remarks

U.S. President George Bush defended his record in office and wished his successor well as he went before reporters for a farewell news conference.
　

President Bush talks to reporters during White House press conference, 12 Jan 2009

At times nostalgic, at times defensive¹, Mr. Bush talked about the issues he faced as president and the challenges that lie before Barack Obama saying, "I genuinely mean what I say - I wish him all the very best."

He said preventing another terrorist attack will be the biggest challenge facing the new chief executive.

"The most urgent threat that he will have to deal with, and other presidents after him will have to deal with, is an attack on our homeland," Mr. Bush said.

The president was asked about his 2002 State of the Union address, when he first referred to an Axis² of Evil - Iran, North Korea and Iraq.

He said Iran remains³ dangerous and North Korea is still a problem. But he pointed⁴ to progress in Iraq, noting that his decision to send in extra U.S. forces helped turn the tide of the war. He acknowledged the young Iraqi democracy is still fragile.

"The question is, in the long run, will this democracy survive and that is going to be the challenge for future presidents," Mr. Bush said.

Mr. Bush also defended his policy in the Middle East. He was asked if he thought the Israeli assault on Gaza might end by Inauguration⁵ Day. He did not answer directly, but he said Hamas militants⁶ must stop rocket attacks from Gaza into Israel.

"There will not be a sustainable cease-fire if they continue firing rockets," Mr. Bush said. "I happen to believe the choice is Hamas's to make."

Mr. Bush said he is not bothered by criticism of his policies, and he strongly denied the notion that America's credibility around the world has been damaged under his watch.

He also disputed accusations⁷ that he has been a poor steward⁸ of the nation's economy.

"Look, I inherited a recession and I am ending on a recession," said Mr. Bush. "In the meantime, there were 52 months of uninterrupted job growth."

President Bush said he has been discussing the economic situation with the president-elect. He said he is looking forward to Inauguration Day, noting he will have a front row seat for history as the nation's first African-American president takes the oath of office.

"He will get sworn in, and they will have the lunch and all the deal up there on Capitol Hill, and then he will come back and go through the inauguration (the inaugural⁹ parade), and then he will walk into the Oval Office, and there will be a moment when the responsibilities of the president land squarely on his shoulders," said Mr. Bush.

In keeping with tradition, President Bush will leave the Capitol immediately after the swearing-in ceremony. He will board a helicopter to the side of the inaugural platform and begin his journey back home to the state of Texas.

1 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

2 axis   

n.轴，轴线，中心线；坐标轴，基准线

参考例句：

• The earth's axis is the line between the North and South Poles.地轴是南北极之间的线。
• The axis of a circle is its diameter.圆的轴线是其直径。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

5 inauguration   

n.开幕、就职典礼

参考例句：

• The inauguration of a President of the United States takes place on January 20.美国总统的就职典礼于一月二十日举行。
• Three celebrated tenors sang at the president's inauguration.3位著名的男高音歌手在总统就职仪式上演唱。

6 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

7 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

8 steward   

n.乘务员，服务员；看管人；膳食管理员

参考例句：

• He's the steward of the club.他是这家俱乐部的管理员。
• He went around the world as a ship's steward.他当客船服务员，到过世界各地。

9 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。