VOA标准英语2011--Speculation Continues About Palin's Poli

Speculation¹ Continues About Palin's Political Future

Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin addresses a Tea Party rally in Iowa on Saturday and political supporters and rivals alike will be listening closely for any indication that she has decided² to run for president.
For months now, Sarah Palin has said she is considering a presidential run next year, but so far has yet to decide. Palin has told interviewers she would probably have to decide by late September, and political analysts³ will be keeping a close eye on this week's Tea Party gathering⁴ in Iowa, at which Palin is the featured speaker.
Palin's political action committee released a two-minute video based on her recent trip to Iowa that has increased speculation she is about to enter the race for the Republican Party's presidential nomination⁶.
"I think we are seeing a great awakening⁷ of the American public, the individual Americans who want the exceptional-ism put back into our country," said Palin.
Palin was the Republican Party's vice⁸ presidential candidate in 2008 and quickly developed an enthusiastic following among social conservative voters and supporters of the small-government Tea Party movement.
But Palin has been overshadowed this year by presidential contenders like Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann and Texas Governor Rick Perry, who has jumped to the top of the Republican field in recent public-opinion polls.
A top political adviser⁹ to former President George W. Bush, Karl Rove, told Fox News that Palin should decide soon if she wants to be a candidate for the White House in 2012.
"Her difficulty is that if she does not get in shortly after next week then I think people are going to basically say, 'She is not in, she will not be in, and if she gets in I am not going to be for her.' You can only tease so many times in the political process and I think she is getting to the end of that," said Rove.
Perry, Bachmann and former Massachusetts governor Mitt⁵ Romney appear to be the top choices for Republicans at the moment. But Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels says there is always room for additional candidates.
"My own view has been that although I like all those folks, there is something to like about each one of them, this is a more the merrier situation and that is why we have an extended nomination process," said Daniels.
Supporters had urged Daniels to enter the race earlier this year, but he declined and said he did not want to put his family through the ordeal¹⁰ of a presidential campaign.
Palin has been a political lightening rod since she was chosen as Republican nominee¹¹ John McCain's running mate in 2008.
Palin gets high ratings from conservative voters, but remains¹² unpopular with centrists and Democrats¹³, says Quinnipiac University pollster Peter Brown.
"Let us be clear," said Brown. "Ms. Palin has very strong support among Republican voters. The problem is that in a general election she does particularly not well among independent voters and will obviously not do well among Democrats."
The latest CNN-ORC Poll found Rick Perry leading the Republican field with 27-percent support, followed by Mitt Romney at 14 percent. Sarah Palin was in third place with 10 percent, followed by Michele Bachmann at nine percent.

1 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

4 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

5 mitt   

n.棒球手套，拳击手套，无指手套；vt.铐住，握手

参考例句：

• I gave him a baseball mitt for his birthday.为祝贺他的生日，我送给他一只棒球手套。
• Tom squeezed a mitt and a glove into the bag.汤姆把棒球手套和手套都塞进袋子里。

6 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。

7 awakening   

n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的

参考例句：

• the awakening of interest in the environment 对环境产生的兴趣
• People are gradually awakening to their rights. 人们正逐渐意识到自己的权利。

8 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。

9 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

10 ordeal   

n.苦难经历，（尤指对品格、耐力的）严峻考验

参考例句：

• She managed to keep her sanity throughout the ordeal.在那场磨难中她始终保持神志正常。
• Being lost in the wilderness for a week was an ordeal for me.在荒野里迷路一星期对我来说真是一场磨难。

11 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

12 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。

13 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》