Obama nominates Senator John Kerry as secretary of state

 WASHINGTON, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday nominated Senator John Kerry to be his next secretary of state as he is trying to usher¹ in a new cabinet for his second term starting in January.

Obama made the announcement at the White House with Vice³ President Joe Biden and Kerry at his side.

"I am very proud to announce my choice for America's next secretary of state, John Kerry," he said. "In a sense, John's entire life has prepared him for this role."

The president heaped praise on Kerry, noting in particular his service in Vietnam as a war veteran and his personal ties with leaders around the world.

"Having served with valor⁴ in Vietnam, he understands that we have a responsibility to use American power wisely, especially our military power," Obama said.

Kerry, 69, won a Silver Star, a Bronze Star and three Purple Hearts for his service in Vietnam from 1968 to 1969. After returning home, he became an anti-war hero.

"Over these many years, John's earned the respect and confidence of leaders around the world. He is not going to need a lot of on-the-job training," Obama said.

"I think it's fair to say that few individuals know as many presidents and prime ministers or grasp our foreign policies as firmly as John Kerry, and this makes him a perfect choice to guide American diplomacy⁵ in the years ahead," he added.

First elected to the Senate as a representative of Massachusetts in 1984, Kerry is serving his fifth term in the chamber⁶. He was elected to chair the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in December 2008 after chairman Biden was elected vice president.

A Democrat⁷, Kerry launched a bid for the White House in 2004 but lost to then incumbent⁸ George W. Bush by a margin⁹ of 34 electoral votes.

However, Obama was still grateful for his being invited by Kerry to make a keynote address at the Democratic National Convention held in Boston in July 2004, when he was an unknown senator from Illinois.

"Of course, I also have to say thanks because John invited a young Illinois state senator to address the Democratic convention in Boston," Obama said, calling Kerry "a great friend."

"I've appreciated John's partnership¹⁰ in helping¹¹ to advance so many of my foreign policy priorities, including the ratification¹² of the New START treaty," he added.

The treaty, which came into force in February 2011, was seen as a tangible¹³ result of the Obama administration's reset¹⁴ in relations with Russia.

As a reliable emissary of the administration, Kerry also went to talk Afghan President Hamid Karzai into agreeing to a run-off presidential election in 2009.

And in 2011, he secured the release by Pakistan of a CIA contractor¹⁵ accused of killing¹⁶ two Pakistanis as well as the return of parts of a U.S. stealth helicopter which crashed in an operation inside the South Asian nation in which al-Qaida leader Osama bin² Laden¹⁷ was killed.

1 usher   

n.带位员，招待员；vt.引导，护送；vi.做招待，担任引座员

参考例句：

• The usher seated us in the front row.引座员让我们在前排就座。
• They were quickly ushered away.他们被迅速领开。

2 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

3 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。

4 valor   

n.勇气，英勇

参考例句：

• Fortitude is distinct from valor.坚韧不拔有别于勇猛。
• Frequently banality is the better parts of valor.老生常谈往往比大胆打破常规更为人称道。

5 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

6 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。

7 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

8 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

9 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。

10 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

11 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

12 ratification   

n.批准，认可

参考例句：

• The treaty is awaiting ratification.条约正等待批准。
• The treaty is subject to ratification.此条约经批准后才能生效。

13 tangible   

adj.有形的，可触摸的，确凿的，实际的

参考例句：

• The policy has not yet brought any tangible benefits.这项政策还没有带来任何实质性的好处。
• There is no tangible proof.没有确凿的证据。

14 reset   

v.重新安排，复位；n.重新放置；重放之物

参考例句：

• As soon as you arrive at your destination,step out of the aircraft and reset your wristwatch.你一到达目的地，就走出飞机并重新设置手表时间。
• He is recovering from an operation to reset his arm.他做了一个手臂复位手术，正在恢复。

15 contractor   

n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌

参考例句：

• The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。
• The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。

16 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

17 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。