NPR 2008-07-05

An influential¹ figure in the conservative movement has died. Former North Carolina Senator Jesse Helms died early today from natural causes at a convalescent center. He was 86. NPR's David Folkenflik reports.

 

Jesse Helms became so popular from his TV commentaries against civil rights and communism in the 1960s that after he quit the Democratic Party and became a Republican, voters sent him to the Senate in 1972. In Washington, Helms was an early champion of Ronald Reagan, and his rhetoric² and parliamentary tactics opposing abortion³, gay rights, welfare programs and foreign aid earned him the nickname "Senator No". Race endured as a defining issue. He fought naming a federal holiday for the Rev⁴. Martin Luther King Jr., and he defeated Harvey Gantt, the first black mayor of Charlotte in 1990 after running ads depicting⁵ a white man being rejected for a job that went to a less-qualified black applicant⁶. Helms never apologized for his defiant⁷ opposition⁸ to racial integration⁹, even after the Republican Party he helped to build in the South had accepted the march of history. David Folkenflik,NPR News.

 

At least 20 homes have been destroyed as a wildfire continues to threaten the Northern California coastal¹⁰ community of Big Sur. Bob Hensley of member station KXJZ reports.

 

Normally, Big Sur is crowded with tourists during the Fourth of July holiday weekend. But a two weeks long fire has not only kept tourist away, it’s resulted in a mandatory¹¹ evacuation for all residents. Some business operators are ignoring the evacuation order. Kirk Gafill, the operator of the Nepenthe restaurant, and his staff stay behind to protect the property. "We feel that we can safely keep our property secure and be on the lookout¹² and attend to primary fire prevention needs." Some 20,000 firefighters are battling hundreds of other wildfires, some of which have destroyed property and forced evacuations. State National Guard troops are currently in training and are expected to be on the fire lines next week. For NPR News, I'm Bob Hensley in Modesto, California.

 

Former hostage Ingrid Betancourt returned to France today to a hero's welcome. The French-Colombian politician's return comes just two days after she was freed in a daring military operation from leftist guerillas who’d been holding her hostage in Colombia for the past six years. Three American contractors¹³ were also freed in the operation and are being reunited with their families back in the US.

 

American Joey Chestnut¹⁴, for a second year in a row, has the distinction of being the world hot dog eating champion in a victory that keeps the title and the mustard-colored belt in the US. Chestnut defeated rival Takeru Kobayashi in sudden death overtime¹⁵, after both contestants¹⁶ downed 59 frankfurters in ten minutes and Chestnut went on to eat five more dogs in the tie breaker. "I’ve been pushed by, been pushed by the audience, and know what I can do is, they pushed me hard （and I’ve been), I love you guys, New York." Thousands gathered to watch the contest at New York's Coney Island where Chestnut defeated 20 other contestants for the title.

 

Wall Street is closed for the Fourth of July holiday. Stocks fell in Europe.

 

This is NPR.

 

President Bush congratulated and helped welcome some new US citizens during a naturalization ceremony today. He joined 76 men and women from 30 nations at Thomas Jefferson’s Virginia State Monticello, where protesters made their voices heard as well. NPR's Yuki Noguchi reports.

 

President Bush said he had lots to celebrate with some of the nation's newest citizens. “Thomas Jefferson once said he’d rather celebrate the Fourth of July than his own birthday. For me, it`s pretty simple. The Fourth of July weekend is my birthday weekend.” But protesters on the sideline weren't celebrating along with him. As soon as his opening remarks started, they started shouting over him: '”War Criminal~~~War Criminal~~.” And then, after the disruption continued for several more seconds, Bush responded: “We believe in free speech in the United States of America.” Yuki Noguchi, NPR News, Washington.

 

Presidential hopeful Barack Obama is spending the Independence Day holiday in Butte, Montana where the presumptive Democratic nominee¹⁸ took in a holiday parade and is attending a family picnic. Obama said that if elected, one of his first jobs will be taking on issues affecting the environment. "Are we gonna declare our independence today? Are we gonna declare our independence from special interests, the oil companies and the gas companies that are preventing us from creating the kind of energy policy that will save our environment and free ourselves from dependence¹⁷ on foreign oil?" Concluding a week-long tour focusing on values and patriotism¹⁹, Obama said only in America could the son of a single mother become president of the US. Obama was joined by his wife Michelle and his two daughters, one of whom is celebrating a birthday today.

 

1 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

2 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

3 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

4 rev   

v.发动机旋转，加快速度

参考例句：

• It's his job to rev up the audience before the show starts.他要负责在表演开始前鼓动观众的热情。
• Don't rev the engine so hard.别让发动机转得太快。

5 depicting   

描绘，描画( depict的现在分词 )； 描述

参考例句：

• a painting depicting the Virgin and Child 一幅描绘童贞马利亚和圣子耶稣的画
• The movie depicting the battles and bloodshed is bound to strike home. 这部描写战斗和流血牺牲的影片一定会取得预期效果。

6 applicant   

n.申请人，求职者，请求者

参考例句：

• He was the hundredth applicant for the job. 他是第100个申请这项工作的人。
• In my estimation, the applicant is well qualified for this job. 据我看, 这位应征者完全具备这项工作的条件。

7 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。

8 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。

9 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

10 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

11 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

12 lookout   

n.注意，前途，瞭望台

参考例句：

• You can see everything around from the lookout.从了望台上你可以看清周围的一切。
• It's a bad lookout for the company if interest rates don't come down.如果利率降不下来，公司的前景可就不妙了。

13 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》

14 chestnut   

n.栗树，栗子

参考例句：

• We have a chestnut tree in the bottom of our garden.我们的花园尽头有一棵栗树。
• In summer we had tea outdoors,under the chestnut tree.夏天我们在室外栗树下喝茶。

15 overtime   

adj.超时的，加班的；adv.加班地

参考例句：

• They are working overtime to finish the work.为了完成任务他们正在加班加点地工作。
• He was paid for the overtime he worked.他领到了加班费。

16 contestants   

n.竞争者，参赛者( contestant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The competition attracted over 500 contestants representing 8 different countries. 这次比赛吸引了代表8个不同国家的500多名参赛者。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency. 两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

18 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

19 patriotism   

n.爱国精神，爱国心，爱国主义

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• They obtained money under the false pretenses of patriotism.他们以虚伪的爱国主义为借口获得金钱。