VOA标准英语2010年-Obama's 'White House to Main Street' C

President Barack Obama speaks on Wall Street reform at the Oakley Lindsay Center in Quincy, Ill., Wednesday, April 28, 2010. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)

On the final stop of a trip to promote his initiatives to rural America, President Barack Obama stopped in Quincy, Illinois.  A mostly supportive crowd of close to three thousand people greeted the President at a time when lawmakers are debating sweeping¹ changes in financial regulation.  Quincy dealt with a difficult economic downturn in the 1970s and 1980s, but it has suffered less from the current recession than other parts of the country. 

Quincy is accustomed to highs and lows. Situated² along the banks of the Mississippi River, flooding brought disaster to the town  most recently in 2008. But floods of woes³ connected to the current economic downtown are harder to find in Quincy.

 

Which is why President Obama may have chosen Quincy for his "White House to Main Street Campaign,"  according to Amy Looten, Executive Director of the Quincy Chamber⁴ of Commerce.  "If he's looking for a community to show the rest of the country that things are turning around, and small communities like ours have survived the recession, I think he's found it here in Quincy," said Looten.

She says the hallmarks of the recession, like plummeting⁵ real estate values and widespread layoffs⁷, have largely avoided Quincy. She goes on to say that "The biggest layoff⁶ we had in manufacturing was probably 50 people."

But Quincy is no stranger to hardship.  Several thousand jobs were lost when electronics manufacturer Motorola moved away in 1976.  The town has seen a steady decline in manufacturing ever since.

While Quincy's current unemployment rate is slightly lower than state and national averages, a growing concern is financial regulation.

Many residents are concerned about their savings⁸ and how to protect them. Quincy resident Rena Quigle reflects that concern, "My retirement⁹ was affected¹⁰ on Wall Street with everything that has happened, and I lost a lot of money through that, so I believe something needs to be done."

An Obama supporter who works in nearby Iowa, Quigle wants to see bipartisan support for financial regulation saying "I think that both sides of the isle¹¹ need to come together, but if the Democrats¹² have to put it together, then I am all for it.  I'm 100 percent behind it."

Even those opposed to many of President Obama's initiatives agree that reform is needed.  Tea Party member and local business owner Bruce Bruening is one, saying "A lot of companies, their retirement plans aren't what they were before then, and we're kind of dissatisfied with the ways things are being run on Wall Street and just need change."

That change - on Wall Street - is a top priority for President Obama and Democratic lawmakers as they seek to secure the largest financial regulation package since the Great Depression.
 

1 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

2 situated   

adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的

参考例句：

• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。
• She is awkwardly situated.她的处境困难。

3 woes   

困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉

参考例句：

• Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
• She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。

4 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

5 plummeting   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Prices are rising, falling, going up, going down, shooting up, plummeting, etc. 物价在上涨、下跌、上升、下落、猛然上涨、骤然下跌等。 来自辞典例句
• The enemy plane went plummeting into the sea. 敌机直直掉进海里。 来自辞典例句

6 layoff   

n.临时解雇，操作停止，活动停止期间，失业期

参考例句：

• Finally, prepare an explanation about what led to your layoff.最后，要准备好一套说辞来解释你被解雇的原因。
• Workers were re-employed after the layoff.在暂时解雇不久后工人们又被再度雇用了。

7 layoffs   

临时解雇( layoff的名词复数 )； 停工，停止活动

参考例句：

• Textile companies announced 2000 fresh layoffs last week. 各纺织公司上周宣布再次裁员两千人。
• Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. 当公司突然宣布裁员时，股票价格便大跌

8 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

9 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

10 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

11 isle   

n.小岛，岛

参考例句：

• He is from the Isle of Man in the Irish Sea.他来自爱尔兰海的马恩岛。
• The boat left for the paradise isle of Bali.小船驶向天堂一般的巴厘岛。

12 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》