NPR 2008-04-02

From NPR News in Washington, I am Jack¹ Speer.

 Top leaders in the Senate under increasing pressure to do something about the rising number of foreclosures in the housing market opted² to put aside some of their differences today and get moving on a plan. Under terms of an agreement between Democratic majority leader Harry³ Reid and minority Republican leader Mitch McConnell, lawmakers agreed to end weeks of bipartisan bickering⁴. Reid said Senators have set an arbitrary deadline of tomorrow to try bringing the measure to the Senate floor. “I am confident, and very very hopeful that it's going to be a breakthrough not only for this piece of legislation, but what we can accomplish in this very difficult political year". Helping⁵ to break the logjam was an agreement to drop a controversial Democratic provision that would have allowed bankruptcy⁶ court judges to cut interest rates and reduce the principal on troubled mortgages. There have been estimats that as many as 2 million homeowners could face foreclosure by the end of next year.

 All across the country today, independent truckers are slowing down or bringing their rigs to a standstill to protest the high-cost fuel. From member station WBGO in Newark New Jersey⁷ Andrew Meyer reports.

 At one rest area on the New Jersey Turnpike, truckers gathered to stage a vocal⁸ protest against the high price of diesel⁹. A spokesman for the Turnpike Authority said truckers were moving at about 20 miles per hour for as far as the eye could see. It's all part of a loosely organized national protest by independent drivers hoping to put pressure on the Bush administration to stabilize¹⁰ fuel prices by dipping into the country's oil reserves. Police outside of Chicago ticketed a trio of truckers for impeding¹¹ traffic on one interstate. Near the Port of Tampa, about 50 drivers idled their rigs, saying they simply couldn't afford to haul their loads for what contractors¹² were paying them. The protests are scattered¹³ because the national trucking companies refrained from getting involved as did the Teamsters Union. From NPR News, I'm Andrew Meyer, in New York.

 Senator Hillary Clinton said she is not giving up the race. Speaking to about eight hundred delegates at the Pennsylvania Convention of the AFL-CIO, Clinton likened herself to Philadelphia cinematic icon¹⁴ "Rocky Balboa". From member station WHYY, Susan Philips reports.

Senator Clinton positioned herself as the underdog, drawing parallels to the south Philadelphia boxer¹⁵ portrayed¹⁶ by Sylvester Stallone in the 1976 film "Rocky".

 "Senator Obama says he is getting tired of the campaign. His supporters say they want it to end. Well, could you imagine, if Rocky Balboa had gotten halfway¹⁷ up those art museum stairs and said 'Well, I guess, that is about far enough". That is not the way it works." Clinton is responding to calls from some Obama supporters "to get out of the race". Clinton told the labor¹⁸ crowd that she would create 3 million new jobs by investing in infrastructure¹⁹. Senator Obama is scheduled to address the conference Wednesday.  For NPR News, I'm Susan Philips, in Philadelphia.

 On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 391 points today, a gain of more than 3%. The S&P was up 47 points. This is NPR.

 The recent upsurge in violence in Iraq has put on hold plans by Britain to begin withdrawing forces from the region. Britain's defense²⁰ minister today told members of the House of Commons that with the current situation in Iraq ,in his words, "unfolding", troop withdrawals²¹ are being stopped for now. Prime Minister Gordon Brown last year announced plans to reduce British troop strength in Iraq from the current 4,000 to around 2,500. The latest upsurge in violence in Iraq comes on the heels of a crackdown against Shiite militias²² being carried out by Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

 New York's proposal for congestion²³ pricing took a big step forward yesterday when city council voted 30 to 20 in favor of a first of its kind of plan. If approved by the state legislature, drivers would have to pay to enter a central business district during peak hours. From member station of WNYC Matthew Schuerman has more.

 The City Council vote came after a dramatic 2-hour floor debate during which opponents from the city's farthest reaches argued that the 8-dollar-fee was elitist. But it's not just Manhattanites who support the plan. Council members representing the Bronx and Harlem say that the congestion fee would actually be good for the city's poor since they overwhelmingly take the subways. The fee is supposed to raise half a billion dollars a year for New York's public transportation system as well as reduce traffic and improve air quality. The vote is a major victory for Mayor Michael Bloomberg who modeled the plan on London's five-year-old system. But the bill faces stiff opposition²⁴ in the state legislature which must vote in the next 6 days before it can become law. For NPR News, I'm Matthew Schuerman in New York.

 Nation's industrial sector²⁵ continued to show signs of contraction²⁶ last month. Institute for Supply Management, a national purchasing managers group, said today its manufacturing index was at 48.6 in March.

 I am Jack Speer, NPR News in Washington.

1 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

2 opted   

v.选择，挑选( opt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was co-opted onto the board. 她获增选为董事会成员。
• After graduating she opted for a career in music. 毕业后她选择了从事音乐工作。

3 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。

4 bickering   

v.争吵( bicker的现在分词 )；口角；（水等）作潺潺声；闪烁

参考例句：

• The children are always bickering about something or other. 孩子们有事没事总是在争吵。
• The two children were always bickering with each other over small matters. 这两个孩子总是为些小事斗嘴。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 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。

6 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。

7 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

8 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

9 diesel   

n.柴油发动机，内燃机

参考例句：

• We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
• My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。

10 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

11 impeding   

a.(尤指坏事)即将发生的，临近的

参考例句：

• Fallen rock is impeding the progress of rescue workers. 坠落的石头阻滞了救援人员的救援进程。
• Is there sufficient room for the kiosk and kiosk traffic without impeding other user traffic? 该环境下是否有足够的空间来摆放信息亭？信息亭是否会妨碍交通或者行走？ 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

12 contractors   

n.（建筑、监造中的）承包人( contractor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Contractors winning construction jobs had to kick back 2 per cent of the contract price to the mafia. 赢得建筑工作的承包商得抽出合同价格的百分之二的回扣给黑手党。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

14 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

15 boxer   

n.制箱者，拳击手

参考例句：

• The boxer gave his opponent a punch on the nose.这个拳击手朝他对手的鼻子上猛击一拳。
• He moved lightly on his toes like a boxer.他像拳击手一样踮着脚轻盈移动。

16 portrayed   

v.画像( portray的过去式和过去分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• Throughout the trial, he portrayed himself as the victim. 在审讯过程中，他始终把自己说成是受害者。
• The author portrayed his father as a vicious drunkard. 作者把他父亲描绘成一个可恶的酒鬼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

17 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

18 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。

19 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

20 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

21 withdrawals   

n.收回，取回，撤回( withdrawal的名词复数 )；撤退，撤走；收回[取回，撤回，撤退，撤走]的实例；推出（组织），提走（存款），戒除毒瘾，对说过的话收回，孤僻

参考例句：

• He has made several withdrawals from his bank account. 他从银行账户上提了几次款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It is not the bank's policy to deduct interest on withdrawals. 提款需扣除利息这并非是本银行的政策。 来自辞典例句

22 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

23 congestion   

n.阻塞，消化不良

参考例句：

• The congestion in the city gets even worse during the summer.夏天城市交通阻塞尤为严重。
• Parking near the school causes severe traffic congestion.在学校附近泊车会引起严重的交通堵塞。

24 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。

25 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

26 contraction   

n.缩略词，缩写式，害病

参考例句：

• The contraction of this muscle raises the lower arm.肌肉的收缩使前臂抬起。
• The forces of expansion are balanced by forces of contraction.扩张力和收缩力相互平衡。