NPR 2008-05-18

Democratic Senator Ted² Kennedy of Massachusetts is said to be alert and speaking with relatives at a Boston hospital, where he's undergoing tests after suffering a seizure³ at the family compound on Cape⁴ Cod⁵. Shannon Mullen at  member station WBUR has more.

The 76-year-old Democrat¹ felt ill at his Cape Cod home and was hospitalized locally before being airlifted to Boston. Hospital officials would not comment on his condition. Last fall, the senior senator had surgery to prevent a stroke. The procedure cleared an arterial blockage⁶ in his neck found during a routine exam of a decades-old back injury. At that time, Kennedy's doctors said his health was excellent, though he takes blood pressure and cholesterol⁷ medication. Kennedy has been in the Senate since his election in 1962. His current term ends in 2013. For NPR News, I'm Shannon Mullen, in Boston.

President Bush met with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheik today, and assured him that he remains⁸ committed to completing an Israeli-Palestinian peace accord leading to creation of an independent Palestinian state before he leaves office. “I told the president that I am absolutely committed to working with he and his negotiators as well as the Israelis to get a state defined.” Mr. Bush also acknowledged today that Saudi Arabia's pledge to increase oil production only slightly will not have a major impact on energy prices.

A new survey indicates that the Republican effort to maintain the party's hold on the White House is in trouble with a key voter group. The poll in battleground states shows Republican dominance of rural areas has waned⁹. NPR’s Howard Berkes has details.

President Bush won the rural vote by double digits¹⁰, but John McCain has half that support against Democrat Barack Obama and he's dead even with Hillary Clinton. That's what a new poll of rural voters indicates. The survey focused on rural counties in 13 battleground states. Close to 700 likely voters responded. Dominance of rural areas has given Republicans winning margins¹¹ in the last two presidential elections. But the survey indicates the rural vote isn’t overwhelmingly Republican now. John McCain polls weak on the economy but strong on values, it's exactly the opposite for Barack Obama. The survey also indicates that some rural voters are crossing party lines, meaning this key voter group is still up for grabs. The bipartisan poll was sponsored by the Center for Rural Strategies, a group trying to attract attention to rural issues. Howard Berkes, NPR News.

The derailment of a freight train in Louisiana this morning prompted evacuation of thousands of people living in nearby communities. One of the railcars ruptured¹², leaking hydrochloric acid. And several people have sought treatment at area hospitals in connection with injuries from the toxic¹³ fumes¹⁴.

This is NPR News from Washington.

A chartered bus overturned on a highway in the Mojave Desert in Southern California today. One person was killed and 21 others were injured. There's no word yet on the cause of that crash.

Zimbabwe’s main opposition¹⁵ leader has delayed indefinitely his return to his homeland because of an alleged¹⁶ assassination¹⁷ plot. Morgan Tsvangirai was headed back to Zimbabwe today to campaign for a run-off election against long-time President Robert Mugabe that was scheduled at the end of June. NPR‘s Ofeibea Quist-Arcton has the story.

Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change said it had credible¹⁸ sources that an attempt on the life of Morgan Tsvangirai was being planned. Spokesman George Sibotshiwe said the details were not clear, but the threat was real. Tsvangirai won most votes in the first round of the presidential election on March 29th, but not enough to avoid a run-off against veteran President Robert Mugabe who's been in power for 28 years. The government and the opposition have traded accusations¹⁹ about mounting campaigns of violence and intimidation²⁰. Zimbabweans were hoping the planned June 27th poll would end a cycle of political and economic turmoil²¹. Ofeibea Quist-Arcton, NPR News, Dakar.

Today's Preakness Stakes look like a carbon copy of the Kentucky Derby as Big Brown cruised to an easy victory in the second jewel of Horse Racing's Triple Crown. Tom Durkin had the call of the finish on NBC TV.

Kent Desormeaux looked to the rear-view mirror, nobody was there. He wows his home to win the Preakness. No one has ever been close to Big Brown. Macho Again finished in second, Icabad Crane was third. So there is，Big Brown！ And it's now on to Belmont and the elusive²² Triple Crown.

There hasn't been a Triple Crown winner in thirty years. Big Brown is undefeated in five races.

1 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。

2 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

3 seizure   

n.没收；占有；抵押

参考例句：

• The seizure of contraband is made by customs.那些走私品是被海关没收的。
• The courts ordered the seizure of all her property.法院下令查封她所有的财产。

4 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

5 cod   

n.鳕鱼；v.愚弄；哄骗

参考例句：

• They salt down cod for winter use.他们腌鳕鱼留着冬天吃。
• Cod are found in the North Atlantic and the North Sea.北大西洋和北海有鳕鱼。

6 blockage   

n.障碍物；封锁

参考例句：

• The logical treatment is to remove this blockage.合理的治疗方法就是清除堵塞物。
• If the blockage worked,they could retreat with dignity.如果封锁发生作用，他们可以体面地撤退。

7 cholesterol   

n.（U）胆固醇

参考例句：

• There is cholesterol in the cell of body.人体细胞里有胆固醇。
• They are determining the serum-protein and cholesterol levels.他们正在测定血清蛋白和胆固醇的浓度。

8 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

9 waned   

v.衰落( wane的过去式和过去分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡

参考例句：

• However,my enthusiasm waned.The time I spent at exercises gradually diminished. 然而，我的热情减退了。我在做操上花的时间逐渐减少了。 来自《用法词典》
• The bicycle craze has waned. 自行车热已冷下去了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 digits   

n.数字( digit的名词复数 )；手指，足趾

参考例句：

• The number 1000 contains four digits. 1000是四位数。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The number 410 contains three digits. 数字 410 中包括三个数目字。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

11 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。

12 ruptured   

v.（使）破裂( rupture的过去式和过去分词 )；（使体内组织等）断裂；使（友好关系）破裂；使绝交

参考例句：

• They reported that the pipeline had ruptured. 他们报告说管道已经破裂了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The wall through Berlin was finally ruptured, prefiguring the reunification of Germany. 柏林墙终于倒塌了，预示着德国的重新统一。 来自辞典例句

13 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

14 fumes   

n.(强烈而刺激的)气味，气体

参考例句：

• The health of our children is being endangered by exhaust fumes. 我们孩子们的健康正受到排放出的废气的损害。
• Exhaust fumes are bad for your health. 废气对健康有害。

15 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。

16 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

17 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

18 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

19 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

20 intimidation   

n.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• The Opposition alleged voter intimidation by the army.反对党声称投票者受到军方的恐吓。
• The gang silenced witnesses by intimidation.恶帮用恐吓的手段使得证人不敢说话。

21 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

22 elusive   

adj.难以表达(捉摸)的；令人困惑的；逃避的

参考例句：

• Try to catch the elusive charm of the original in translation.翻译时设法把握住原文中难以捉摸的风韵。
• Interpol have searched all the corners of the earth for the elusive hijackers.国际刑警组织已在世界各地搜查在逃的飞机劫持者。