VOA标准英语2011--Republican Debates, Obama Jobs Speech Hi

Republican Debates, Obama Jobs Speech Highlight Busy Month in US Politics

September promises to be a busy month in U.S. presidential politics. The Republican presidential contenders take part in the first of three debates on Wednesday, while President Barack Obama delivers a major speech on the economy and jobs Thursday before a joint¹ session of Congress.
The latest public-opinion polls show Texas Governor Rick Perry has vaulted² into the lead in the Republican presidential field over former Massachusetts governor Mitt³ Romney and several other contenders.
Wednesday's debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California will be Governor Perry's first as a presidential candidate and his performance will be closely watched by voters, political rivals, and experts.
Perry has wasted little time in going after Romney as his main rival, including this comment about job creation at a campaign event in South Carolina.
"There is one in particular who has created jobs all over the world. But while he was governor of Massachusetts he did not create very many jobs," said Perry.
The economy and jobs are also the top issues for Romney, who continues to focus his campaign in the early primary state of New Hampshire.
"Last month you saw zero jobs created," said Romney. "The American people have zero confidence in a president that creates zero jobs."
Political analyst⁴ Norman Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute expects Romney will try to regain⁵ some momentum⁶ in the upcoming Republican debates.
"He [Romney] is going to come out swinging hard against Rick Perry," said Ornstein. "He needs to define Perry before Perry can fully⁷ define himself."
Romney had been leading the Republican field for months, but with Perry's entrance he now has a fight on his hands, says American University historian Allan Lichtman.
"But now he has got a real heavyweight entering the ring and certainly Perry comes out, I think, at this point equal and maybe even has a slight edge over Romney," noted⁸ Lichtman.
Six other contenders will take part in the Wednesday debate, including Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, Texas Congressman⁹ Ron Paul, and former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich.
It is expected that the Republican contenders will focus their rhetorical fire on President Barack Obama and his economic record during the upcoming debates.
The president, meanwhile, is preparing for a major speech on the economy and jobs Thursday before a divided U.S. Congress.
President Obama rallied union workers in Detroit on Labor¹⁰ Day.
"There is work to be done and workers ready to do it," said Obama. "Labor is on board. Business is on board. We just need Congress to get on board."
The speech comes at a critical time in Obama's presidency¹¹. New polls show his public-approval ratings are at an all-time low and three-quarters of those asked say the country is headed in the wrong direction.
On the other hand, polls show Americans still like Obama personally, and they still give him a slight advantage in head-to-head matchups with Republican presidential contenders Rick Perry and Mitt Romney.

1 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

2 vaulted   

adj.拱状的

参考例句：

• She vaulted over the gate and ran up the path. 她用手一撑跃过栅栏门沿着小路跑去。
• The formal living room has a fireplace and vaulted ceilings. 正式的客厅有一个壁炉和拱形天花板。

3 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。

4 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

5 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

6 momentum   

n.动力，冲力，势头；动量

参考例句：

• We exploit the energy and momentum conservation laws in this way.我们就是这样利用能量和动量守恒定律的。
• The law of momentum conservation could supplant Newton's third law.动量守恒定律可以取代牛顿第三定律。

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 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

10 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

11 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。