Obama Names Locke as New China Ambassador

    VOA News March 09, 2011 - U.S. President Barack Obama has nominated（提名,任命） Commerce Secretary Gary Locke as the new ambassador to China.
    In remarks at the White House Wednesday, Obama said Locke is the right person to continue America's efforts to boost cooperation（合作） with China. He said he can think of no one who is more qualified¹ than Locke.
    If approved by the Senate, Locke will be the first Chinese-American to hold the top diplomatic post in China. Locke's grandfather and father were born in China.
    Locke said he will perform his duties "as a devoted² and passionate³ advocate for America, the country where I was born and raised."Locke would replace Jon Huntsman, who is resigning next month and who is seen as a possible Republican challenger to Obama in the next presidential election.
    Locke previously⁴ served two terms as the governor of the northwestern state of Washington. He visited China several times during his time in state office and is credited with boosting trade between the country and his state.
    He also visited China last year on a trade mission to promote American clean energy business. As commerce secretary, Locke has pushed China to drop trade barriers and to do more to protect intellectual property rights.
    Chinese media had mostly favorable reactions to news of Locke's appointment. China's former envoy⁵ to the United States, Zhou Wenzhong, was quoted in The Beijing News on Wednesday calling Locke knowledgeable⁶ and friendly toward China.
    But scholar Yuan Peng warned in China's Global Times that Locke may try to use his heritage and "Chinese-looking face" to "swindle" the Chinese people.（本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑）

1 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

2 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

3 passionate   

adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的

参考例句：

• He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。
• He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。

4 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

5 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

6 knowledgeable   

adj.知识渊博的；有见识的

参考例句：

• He's quite knowledgeable about the theatre.他对戏剧很有心得。
• He made some knowledgeable remarks at the meeting.他在会上的发言颇有见地。