NPR 2008-12-04

President-elect Barack Obama says he is glad to see the Big Three automakers put forward more serious plans for restructuring, though he says he will withhold⁴ judgment⁵ on those plans until after auto¹ executives appear at Congressional hearings. NPR's David Schaper reports.

At a Chicago news conference to introduce New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson as his choice to be secretary of commerce, Mr. Obama told reporters Congress did the right thing by demanding that the auto company executives present more detailed⁶ restructuring plans before voting on an auto industry bailout. "We should maintain a viable⁷ auto industry, but we should also make sure that any government assistance that's provided is designed for a, is based on realistic assessments⁸ of what the auto market is going to be.” And President-elect Obama says the auto companies need a realistic plan for remaining viable over the long term before they should expect any financial help from the federal government. David Schaper, NPR News, Chicago.

Even as the heads of the major auto makers² and their union are working feverishly⁹ to sell a skeptical¹⁰ Congress on the idea of a 34-billion-dollar aid package, there're signs of pushback on Capitol Hill. Senate Majority Leader Harry¹¹ Reid said today it stands now what Democratic plan to tap the administration 700-billion-dollar financial bailout plan to fund the rescue effort lacks the votes to pass. However, General Motors President of North America Troy Clarke says in contrast to their last visit to Washington, this time the auto executives have concrete plans for the federal money. "We spent a lot of time and energy, you know, the last two weeks since we were in Washington last, you know, put these plans together, it's a, you know, we are hoping to get favorable reaction, if we don't, we're, we're kind of back to the drawing board. " All three of the troubled domestic automakers say an auto company bankruptcy¹² would have profound effects on the economy. Hearings are set to begin tomorrow with possible House and Senate votes scheduled for next week.

Congressional appointed panel says US is not doing enough to combat the threat of biological or nuclear weapons of mass destruction and it predicts there could be an attack somewhere in the world in the next five years. Vice¹³ President-elect Joe Biden was briefed on those findings today. NPR's Brian Naylor reports.

Members of the bipartisan commission say their aim is to raise alarms that the US along with the rest of the world is not adequately prepared to deal with the threat of terrorists acquiring weapons of mass destruction. Biden, who is briefed by the commission, says its conclusions are clear. "No, we are not doing all we can or should, and we are not doing all we can to prevent the world's most lethal¹⁴ weapons from winding¹⁵ up in the hands of a terrorist.” Among the panel's recommendations that the Obama administration names someone in the White House to coordinate¹⁶ governing policy to combat the use and spread of WMDs. Biden said he’ll be talking to the president-elect about the steps the administration should be taking to make the country more secure. Brian Naylor, NPR News, Washington.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 172 points. This is NPR.

US Steel Corporation announced today it's temporarily suspending operations at one of its plants in Illinois as well as operations at two other facilities, affecting an estimated 3, 500 employees. The company says it will temporarily shift much of the production from those facilities to other plants. Company called the decision that temporarily consolidated¹⁷ operations a necessary response to difficult market conditions. Jet engine maker³ Pratt & Whitney also announced layoffs¹⁸ today. The company says it's cutting 350 jobs.

A judge has announced to sentence the so-called millennium¹⁹ bomber²⁰ to 22 years in prison again. NPR's Martin Kaste has more from Seattle.

Would-be bomber Ahmed Ressam was already sentenced to 22 years back in 2005, but federal prosecutors²¹ wanted to lengthen²² that to life in prison. They say the Algerian should get a longer sentence because he stopped cooperating with the prosecution²³ of other alleged²⁴ terrorists. A federal appeals court directed Seattle Federal Judge John Coughenour to re-sentence Ressam. But on Tuesday, Coughenour stuck with the 22 years, which means Ressam could be out on parole in a decade. Ressam was caught at a Washington State border checkpoint in 1999, driving a car with a trunk full of the makings for a large bomb. Investigators²⁵ say the target was the LA airport. Martin Kaste, NPR News, Seattle.

The Jonas Brothers are joining two UK singers, an emerging R&B star and a country act as the Grammys best new artist nominees²⁶. In the case of the Jonas Brothers, they've already released 2 CDs, but their latest "A Little Bit Longer" was their biggest yet. The teen idols²⁷ are competing against British female singers Duffy and Adele along with country group Lady Antebellum and singer Jazmine Sullivan.

1 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

2 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

4 withhold   

v.拒绝，不给；使停止，阻挡

参考例句：

• It was unscrupulous of their lawyer to withhold evidence.他们的律师隐瞒证据是不道德的。
• I couldn't withhold giving some loose to my indignation.我忍不住要发泄一点我的愤怒。

5 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

6 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

7 viable   

adj.可行的，切实可行的，能活下去的

参考例句：

• The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
• The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。

8 assessments   

n.评估( assessment的名词复数 )；评价；（应偿付金额的）估定；（为征税对财产所作的）估价

参考例句：

• He was shrewd in his personal assessments. 他总能对人作出精明的评价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Surveys show about two-thirds use such assessments, while half employ personality tests. 调查表明，约有三分之二的公司采用了这种测评；而一半的公司则采用工作人员个人品质测试。 来自百科语句

9 feverishly   

adv. 兴奋地

参考例句：

• Feverishly he collected his data. 他拼命收集资料。
• The company is having to cast around feverishly for ways to cut its costs. 公司迫切须要想出各种降低成本的办法。

10 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

11 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

12 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

13 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。

14 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

15 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。

16 coordinate   

adj.同等的，协调的；n.同等者；vt.协作，协调

参考例句：

• You must coordinate what you said with what you did.你必须使你的言行一致。
• Maybe we can coordinate the relation of them.或许我们可以调和他们之间的关系。

17 consolidated   

a.联合的

参考例句：

• With this new movie he has consolidated his position as the country's leading director. 他新执导的影片巩固了他作为全国最佳导演的地位。
• Those two banks have consolidated and formed a single large bank. 那两家银行已合并成一家大银行。

18 layoffs   

临时解雇( layoff的名词复数 )； 停工，停止活动

参考例句：

• Textile companies announced 2000 fresh layoffs last week. 各纺织公司上周宣布再次裁员两千人。
• Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. 当公司突然宣布裁员时，股票价格便大跌

19 millennium   

n.一千年，千禧年；太平盛世

参考例句：

• The whole world was counting down to the new millennium.全世界都在倒计时迎接新千年的到来。
• We waited as the clock ticked away the last few seconds of the old millennium.我们静候着时钟滴答走过千年的最后几秒钟。

20 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

21 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

22 lengthen   

vt.使伸长，延长

参考例句：

• He asked the tailor to lengthen his coat.他请裁缝把他的外衣放长些。
• The teacher told her to lengthen her paper out.老师让她把论文加长。

23 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

24 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

25 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

26 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

27 idols   

偶像( idol的名词复数 )； 受崇拜的人或物； 受到热爱和崇拜的人或物； 神像

参考例句：

• The genii will give evidence against those who have worshipped idols. 魔怪将提供证据来反对那些崇拜偶像的人。 来自英汉非文学 - 文明史
• Teenagers are very sequacious and they often emulate the behavior of their idols. 青少年非常盲从，经常模仿他们的偶像的行为。