VOA常速英语2019--约翰逊或靠民众力量实现脱欧

New faces and a fresh approach. Newly installed British Prime Minister Boris Johnson conducted a brutal² government reshuffle this week, purging³ the cabinet of rivals and rewarding loyalists and pro¹ Brexit politicians. In his first speech to Parliament, Johnson pledged above all to leave the EU on October 31st. To do, otherwise would cause a catastrophic loss of confidence in our political system. He said that withdrawal⁴ agreement had to be renegotiated including the removal of the so-called Irish backstop, which would keep Britain closely bound to the EU if an eventual⁵ trade deal fails to remove the need for a hard border. Johnson promised a golden age awaited Britain after Brexit. We will throw ourselves into these negotiations⁶ with the greatest energy and determination, adding a spirit of friendship and I hope that the EU will be equally ready and that they will rethink their current refusal to make any changes to the withdrawal event. If they do not if they do not, we will of course have to leave the UK without an agreement under Article 50.

新的面孔，新的方法。新上任的英国首相约翰逊本周进行了内阁大洗牌，清除了内阁中的对手，奖励了忠诚的大臣和支持脱欧的政客。在面向议会的首次演讲中，约翰逊首先承诺会在10月31日脱欧。如果这件事做不成，我们的政治体系就会失信于他人。约翰逊表示，脱欧协议必须要重新商讨，包括取代爱尔兰边境保护措施的内容，这样会让英国始终与欧洲保持紧密的联系，如果最终脱欧协议没能删掉对硬边界的要求的话。约翰逊承诺，脱欧成功后，黄金时代在等着英国。我们会竭尽全力、下定决心商讨脱欧事务，也会带着一丝友善去协商。我希望欧盟同样能做好百分百的准备，也希望欧盟能重新思考目前拒绝就脱欧事宜作出改变的想法。如果欧盟不转变，那么我们只能根据第50条来进行无协议脱欧了。

That threat brought condemnation⁷ from the opposition⁸ and from Europe. And No Deal is a British threat. The only people who can cause No Deal is United Kingdom government. The position of the European Union and the position of Ireland has not changed. The backstop is an integral part of the parol agreement. Parliament rejected the withdrawal agreement negotiated by Johnson’s predecessor⁹ Teresa May 3 times. MPs have also threatened to block any attempt to leave the EU with No Deal fearing economic devastation¹⁰. Boris Johnson has not ruled out suspending Parliament to force an exit with potentially huge constitutional implications. The positions in parliament will be even more entrenched¹¹ now and so in a way he faces a more difficult task with Parliament than Mrs May did. All he can hope for is that this message of optimism is going to be echoed back by the country. The country is going to respond to that and that will make it very much more difficult for parliamentarians to continue in their resistance. Johnson’s only way through the political quagmire¹² could be to go back to the people. I think really as much as anything, his rhetoric¹³ is gearing up for a general election campaign in which he is going to invite the British public to choose between optimism and defeatism. You can almost see his attack lines being written for him all ready for that forthcoming election. The EU might agree another extension to Brexit to allow for an election, but polls show no one party gaining a majority and the public deeply split. Despite the new government, Britain is facing the same problems with no clear end to its ongoing¹⁴ political Crisis.

约翰逊的威胁性言论招致了英国反对派以及欧盟的谴责。无协议脱欧是英国的威胁说法。唯一能导致无协议脱欧的只有英国政府自己。欧盟的立场和爱尔兰的立场没有改变。爱尔兰边境保护措施是协议的有机组成部分。英国议会曾3次否决约翰逊前任——特蕾莎与欧盟商定的脱欧协议。一些英国议员也曾威胁称要阻止无协议脱欧的尝试，因为他们担心会导致经济衰退。约翰逊并未暂停议会来强制脱欧的可能性，这样可能会对宪法造成巨大影响。议员的地位更加不可撼动了，所以从某种程度来看，约翰逊与国会纠缠的任务难度比特蕾莎要难。约翰逊唯一能希望的就是积极的讯息能够得到整个国家的响应。整个英国会对此做出反应的，而这回让议员们更难抵制约翰逊的做法。约翰逊克服政治困境的唯一方法就是寄希望于人民。我觉得他的说辞很有可能会跟在竞选期间一样，他会邀请英国公众在乐观主义和失败主义之间做出选择。你几乎已经能看到他的进攻线路已经准备好，是为即将到来的大选而准备的。欧盟可能会批准脱欧再次延期，以便容英国进行大选。但民调显示，没有任何一个政党获得多数席位，英国正在上演的政治危机也似乎看不到头。

1 pro   

n.赞成，赞成的意见，赞成者

参考例句：

• The two debating teams argued the question pro and con.辩论的两组从赞成与反对两方面辩这一问题。
• Are you pro or con nuclear disarmament?你是赞成还是反对核裁军？

2 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

3 purging   

清洗； 清除； 净化； 洗炉

参考例句：

• You learned the dry-mouthed, fear-purged, purging ecstasy of battle. 你体会到战斗中那种使人嘴巴发干的，战胜了恐惧并排除其他杂念的狂喜。
• Purging databases, configuring, and making other exceptional requests might fall into this category. 比如清空数据库、配置，以及其他特别的请求等都属于这个类别。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

4 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

5 eventual   

adj.最后的，结局的，最终的

参考例句：

• Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
• Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。

6 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

7 condemnation   

n.谴责; 定罪

参考例句：

• There was widespread condemnation of the invasion. 那次侵略遭到了人们普遍的谴责。
• The jury's condemnation was a shock to the suspect. 陪审团宣告有罪使嫌疑犯大为震惊。

8 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。

9 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

10 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 entrenched   

adj.确立的，不容易改的(风俗习惯)

参考例句：

• Television seems to be firmly entrenched as the number one medium for national advertising.电视看来要在全国广告媒介中牢固地占据头等位置。
• If the enemy dares to attack us in these entrenched positions,we will make short work of them.如果敌人胆敢进攻我们固守的阵地，我们就消灭他们。

12 quagmire   

n.沼地

参考例句：

• On their way was a quagmire which was difficult to get over.路上他俩遇到了—个泥坑,很难过得去。
• Rain had turned the grass into a quagmire.大雨使草地变得一片泥泞。

13 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

14 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。