NPR 2009-03-01

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Barbara Klein.

President Obama is defending his 3.6-trillion-dollar budget proposal. In his Saturday address, the President said he expects resistance to the enormous spending proposal and he's ready to fight for it. NPR's Scott Horsley reports.

President Obama said the spending plan he sent to Congress this week reflects the priorities of the voters he met on the campaign trail. But he acknowledged not everyone shares those priorities. Mr. Obama said while opponents are gearing up for a battle over the budget, he is too. "I didn't come here to do the same thing we've been doing or to take small steps forward. I came to provide the sweeping¹ change that this country demanded when it went to the polls in November. That is the change this budget starts to make, and that is the change I'll be fighting for in the weeks ahead." The President's plan to finance some initiatives with higher taxes on wealthy Americans and new fees on greenhouse gases has already run into criticism from Congressional Republicans. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.

Some charitable organizations say they’ll be hurt by Mr. Obama's budget plan. Larry Kopp, president of a consulting group for non-profits says the proposed budget would decrease the amount of charitable donations people can deduct² from their taxes. "There's no question that the tax code is going to affect large-scale, you know what they call high net worth individuals and their willingness to donate to nonprofit and charitable organization." Kopp also says demand is up during this economic crisis and donations are down.

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki today said he welcomes President Obama's plan to withdraw US combat forces by August of 2010. Maliki said Iraq's military has proven its ability to assume security responsibility when American troops leave.

Authorities in Iran have arrested and detained an American freelance reporter.  Roxana Saberi has reported for NPR, the BBC and other news organizations. The 31-year-old moved to Iran six years ago. NPR's Kate Davidson has more.

Roxana Saberi was arrested in Teheran almost a month ago. Her father Reza Saberi is originally from Iran. In an interview to air Sunday morning on weekend edition, he described the last time he heard his daughter's voice. "It was February 10, when she called from an unknown place and said that she has been kept in detention³." The family says it still doesn't know where Saberi is being held or what the charges are. They've stayed quiet until now in hope she would be released. Iranian officials revoked⁴ Saberi's press credentials⁵ more than a year ago, but she continued to report. In December, the Committee to Protect Journalists called Iran the “sixth leading jailer of journalists.” The group's website said that more than 30 journalists were investigated or detained in Iran last year. Kate Davidson, NPR News, Washington.

This is NPR News.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a state of emergency because of a prolonged drought. The declaration calls for water rationing⁶ and conservation in urban areas and could redirect water to farms. Still many farmers say it could be too late for this year's harvest. Meanwhile, in an effort to jump-start California's deeply depressed⁷ real estate market, Schwarzenegger is offering a hefty tax break to first-time homebuyers. NPR's Karen Grigsby Bates has more.

In his weekly Saturday address, the governor acknowledged the alarming condition of California real estate.

"In some neighborhoods, rows and rows of homes sit vacant. New developments have been halted in their tracks." And Schwarzenegger says it's not just new construction is hurting. "1.6 million jobs in California rely on building, buying, remodeling and furnishing homes. Getting our housing industry moving again is one of the best things that we can do to protect and create jobs." Hoping to do that, the governor is offering first-time homebuyers a $10,000 tax credit if they buy a home between March 1st, 2009 and March 1st, 2010. The offer has a 100-million-dollar cap the governor warned, so early buyers will have first shot at the one time fund. Karen Grigsby Bates, NPR News.

Business tycoon⁸ Warren Buffett, considered one of the nation's most astute⁹ investors¹⁰, announced in an annual report today that his company has just had its worst year. In a letter to stockholders of Berkshire Hathaway Corporation, Buffett said 2009 will also be a difficult year. But he also told investors that the US economy will be fine in the long run.

1 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

2 deduct   

vt.扣除，减去

参考例句：

• You can deduct the twenty - five cents out of my allowance.你可在我的零用钱里扣去二角五分钱。
• On condition of your signing this contract,I will deduct a percentage.如果你在这份合同上签字，我就会给你减免一个百分比。

3 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

4 revoked   

adj.[法]取消的v.撤销，取消，废除( revoke的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It may be revoked if the check is later dishonoured. 以后如支票被拒绝支付，结算可以撤销。 来自辞典例句
• A will is revoked expressly. 遗嘱可以通过明示推翻。 来自辞典例句

5 credentials   

n.证明，资格，证明书，证件

参考例句：

• He has long credentials of diplomatic service.他的外交工作资历很深。
• Both candidates for the job have excellent credentials.此项工作的两个求职者都非常符合资格。

6 rationing   

n.定量供应

参考例句：

• Wartime austerities included food rationing and shortage of fuel. 战时的艰苦包括食物配给和燃料短缺。
• Food rationing was abolished in that country long ago. 那个国家早就取消了粮食配给制。

7 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

8 tycoon   

n.有钱有势的企业家，大亨

参考例句：

• The tycoon is on the verge of bankruptcy.那名大亨濒临破产的边缘。
• The tycoon has many servants to minister to his needs.那位大亨有很多人服侍他。

9 astute   

adj.机敏的，精明的

参考例句：

• A good leader must be an astute judge of ability.一个优秀的领导人必须善于识别人的能力。
• The criminal was very astute and well matched the detective in intelligence.这个罪犯非常狡猾，足以对付侦探的机智。

10 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会