VOA标准英语2009年-US Senate Confirms Sotomayor for Supreme C

The U.S. Senate has confirmed the nomination¹ of Sonia Sotomayor as an associate justice on the Supreme² Court of the United States. President Barack Obama welcomed the 68 to 31 vote, which came after three days of debate on Sotomayor's judicial³ record and public statements.
　
Sonia Sotomayor waves as she leaves Manhattan Federal Court, in New York, 06 Aug 2009

Fifty-nine Senate Democrats⁵ supported confirmation⁶ of Sotomayor for the high court, joined by 9 of 40 Senate Republicans.

At the White House, President Obama said the vote confirmed that Sotomayor is fully⁷ equipped for the court and that she would uphold equal justice under the law.

"With this historic vote, the Senate has affirmed that Judge Sotomayor has the intellect, the temperament⁸, the history, the integrity and the independence of mind to ably serve on our nation's highest court," he said.

In the hours before the vote, Democrats and Republicans voiced opposing views about cases Sotomayor ruled on in her 17 years as a federal judge as well as some of her writings and public statements.

While all agreed she was highly-qualified, Republicans renewed their assertions that she would bring a left-wing political bias⁹ to the high court, and introduced letters from anti-abortion, gun rights and other groups opposing her nomination.

Republicans focused, among other things, on their assertion that Sotomayor would carry out an activist¹⁰ agenda and allow her personal empathy for certain racial and ethnic¹¹ groups to influence her decisions.
　
Sen. Jeff Sessions (file photo)

Jeff Sessions, the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said an empathy standard as Republicans assert President Barack Obama endorsed¹² for the selection of judges would set a dangerous precedent¹³.

"The president's empathy standard is much more than a rhetorical flourish," he said. "It is a dangerous judicial philosophy where judges would base their rulings on their social, personal [and] political views. It is an attempt to sell really an old discredited¹⁴ activist philosophy by marketing¹⁵ it under a new label."

During her confirmation hearing, Sotomayor - the first Hispanic to be nominated for the Supreme Court - said she regretted public statements in which she suggested that a wise Latina would be able to reach a better decision in a case based on her experiences than a white male judge, saying that her comments were aimed at inspiring young law students.

Democrats accused Republicans of focusing on a fraction of the more than 3,000 cases Sotomayor was involved in, and said she would bring impartiality¹⁶ and a fidelity¹⁷ to the law to the court.

Democrat⁴ Patrick Leahy, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Sotomayor's record in federal courts demonstrated she would not allow her personal experiences to dominate the law, although those experiences would help inform her decisions.

Leahy responded to the Republican empathy argument. "Some of those choosing to oppose this historic nomination have tried to justify¹⁸ their opposition¹⁹ by falsely contending that President Obama is pitting empathy against the rule of law. Not so! Not so!," he said.

Sotomayor rose from an upbringing in New York in a poor family from Puerto Rico, to attend prestigious²⁰ universities and pursue a career as a prosecutor²¹ before she was nominated to the federal bench in 1991 by former Republican President George H.W. Bush.

In addition to being the first person of Hispanic heritage to serve on the Supreme Court, she is only the third woman to ascend²² to the high court.

Democratic Senator Barbara Boxer²³ of California referred to both facts in her floor statement before the vote.

"She will become only the third woman, the third woman ever to don [i.e., put on] the robes of a Supreme Court justice," she said. "She will make history as the nation's first Hispanic Supreme Court justice. This is a proud moment for our entire nation and especially for the 13 million Latinos in California, and the 45 million Latinos nationwide."

As is the tradition for votes of major significance such as the confirmation of a Supreme Court justice, all senators were seated when the final vote to confirm Sotomayor was taken.

Al Franken, newly appointed to the Senate as a Democrat from Minnesota, announced the result.

"On this vote, the 'yeas' are 68 and the 'nays²⁴' are 31," he said. "The nomination of Sonia Sotomayor of New York to be associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States is confirmed."

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts will administer the oath of office to Sotomayor on Saturday. There will be two ceremonies, one private and one public. The public event will be the first at which television cameras will be permitted.

Sotomayor - who replaces retired²⁵ Justice David Souter - will assume her seat as the nation's 111th Supreme Court justice in September because the high court will convene²⁶ to consider a case pending²⁷ before it, although its formal session begins in October.

1 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

2 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

3 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

4 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。

5 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》

6 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

7 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。

8 temperament   

n.气质，性格，性情

参考例句：

• The analysis of what kind of temperament you possess is vital.分析一下你有什么样的气质是十分重要的。
• Success often depends on temperament.成功常常取决于一个人的性格。

9 bias   

n.偏见，偏心，偏袒；vt.使有偏见

参考例句：

• They are accusing the teacher of political bias in his marking.他们在指控那名教师打分数有政治偏见。
• He had a bias toward the plan.他对这项计划有偏见。

10 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

11 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

12 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》

13 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。

14 discredited   

不足信的，不名誉的

参考例句：

• The reactionary authorities are between two fires and have been discredited. 反动当局弄得进退维谷，不得人心。
• Her honour was discredited in the newspapers. 她的名声被报纸败坏了。

15 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

16 impartiality   

n. 公平, 无私, 不偏

参考例句：

• He shows impartiality and detachment. 他表现得不偏不倚，超然事外。
• Impartiality is essential to a judge. 公平是当法官所必需的。

17 fidelity   

n.忠诚，忠实；精确

参考例句：

• There is nothing like a dog's fidelity.没有什么能比得上狗的忠诚。
• His fidelity and industry brought him speedy promotion.他的尽职及勤奋使他很快地得到晋升。

18 justify   

vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护

参考例句：

• He tried to justify his absence with lame excuses.他想用站不住脚的借口为自己的缺席辩解。
• Can you justify your rude behavior to me?你能向我证明你的粗野行为是有道理的吗？

19 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

20 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

21 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

22 ascend   

vi.渐渐上升，升高；vt.攀登，登上

参考例句：

• We watched the airplane ascend higher and higher.我们看着飞机逐渐升高。
• We ascend in the order of time and of development.我们按时间和发展顺序向上溯。

23 boxer   

n.制箱者，拳击手

参考例句：

• The boxer gave his opponent a punch on the nose.这个拳击手朝他对手的鼻子上猛击一拳。
• He moved lightly on his toes like a boxer.他像拳击手一样踮着脚轻盈移动。

24 nays   

n.反对票，投反对票者( nay的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The tally was two ayes and three nays. 投票结果是两票赞成，三票反对。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The tally was three yeas and two nays, so the yeas have it. 投票结果是三票赞成两票反对，投赞成票者胜利。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

25 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

26 convene   

v.集合，召集，召唤，聚集，集合

参考例句：

• The Diet will convene at 3p.m. tomorrow.国会将于明天下午三点钟开会。
• Senior officials convened in October 1991 in London.1991年10月，高级官员在伦敦会齐。

27 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。