NPR 2009-07-22

President Obama remains¹ on the offensive today in terms of defending his health care overhaul² plan, saying that critics of the package are working what he called "a familiar Washington Script" that favors politics over policy.  President accused opponents of his plan of seeking to slow changes in health care and hopes the plan fails. And he accused the critics of favoring insurance companies over consumers. Mr. Obama says he wants legislation that expands health care coverage³ and helps to bring down costs. Speaking at the White House, the President said progress has been made in moving his health care initiative forward.

 The Senate voted today to stop production of the F-22 jet made by Lockheed Martin, cutting $1.75 billion from the defense⁴ budget. NPR's Kathy Lohr has more.

 President Obama said continuing the F-22 program would have been an inexcusable waste of money at a time when the country is fighting two wars and facing a serious deficit⁵. Those who want to cut the spending say the fighter jet which has not been used in Iraq or Afghanistan is too expensive and out of date. Instead the Pentagon wants to increase production of the F-35 fighter. Lockheed Martin builds both planes. Some in Congress are concerned about the loss of tens of thousands of jobs associated with the F-22. Georgia Senator Johnny Isakson says the plane is vital to 21st century American military superiority. But the President has vowed⁶ to veto any bill that keeps the F-22 program intact. The defense spending bill in the House still includes funding for the F-22 and that difference will have to be resolved. Kathy Lohr, NPR News, Atlanta.

 Despite the recession, both Southwest Airlines and United Airlines posted small profits for the second quarter. Continental⁷ Airlines, however, posted a significant loss. From Dallas, NPR's Wade⁸ Goodwyn reports.

 The second quarter profit of $28 million for United and $54 million for Southwest is more of a blip on the radar⁹ screen than it's an indication of any sort of turnaround in air travel. But it does speak to the nimbleness of management and workers at two of the nation's most important carriers. Southwest has filled its seats with discount ticket passengers and reversed the string of losses in three quarters. Revenue is down nearly 9% from last year. That was much better than Continental Airlines which saw a dip of more than 22% and a quarterly loss of $169 million. Matching supply with falling demand continues to be the industry's biggest challenge. Wade Goodwyn, NPR News. Dallas.

 Apple waited until after the stock market closed today to announce that profits were up 15% for the company's most recent quarter even with the relatively¹⁰ weak economy. The maker¹¹ of computers and the popular iPhones says its earnings  rose to $1.23 billion or $1.35 a share.

 On Wall Street today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 67 points, ending the session at 8,915. The NASDAQ gained six points today.

 This is NPR.

Officials in Afghanistan say Taliban militants¹³ were involved in a series of attacks on government buildings and a US base in two eastern cities. Officials say eight insurgents¹⁴ and six Afghan security personnel were killed in the fighting. One attack targeted the governor's compound in the city of Gardez just as a meeting between tribal¹⁵ elders and government leaders was wrapping up. Three militants also tried to attack a US base near the city of Jalalabad. Taliban militants have launched a number of attacks over the past year, often involving multiple suicide bombers¹⁶ followed by gunmen.

Lebanon has arrested 10 militants it says who were plotting attacks on its army and UN peacekeepers in the south of the country. Dale Gavlak has more.

The Lebanese army said it uncovered a militant¹² Islamist network belonging to the Fatah al-Isalm group which fought a 15-week battle with the army two years ago. The group has ties to the Al-Qaeda terrorist network. It said the militants came from other Arab countries and its ring leader is a Syrian national. The army said the network was also plotting assaults from Lebanon on targets abroad, but gave no specifics. It said the group intended to monitor UN troops and the army to carry out terrorist attacks on them. UN peacekeepers have been stationed in southern Lebanon since the summer war with Israel three years ago. They have been the target of several attacks since that time. For NPR News, I'm Dale Gavlak in Amman.

A former mutual¹⁷ fund executive is taking the reins¹⁸ at mortgage finance giant Freddie Mac. The company announced today Charles Haldeman Jr. who recently stepped down as chairman of Putnam Investments to serve as Freddie Mac's new CEO. He will replace John Koskinen. The new companies combined own or guarantee almost half of the US mortgage market.

I'm Jack¹⁹ Speer, NPR News in Washington.

1 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。

2 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

3 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

4 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。

5 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

6 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

7 continental   

adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的

参考例句：

• A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。
• The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。

8 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

9 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

10 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

11 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。

12 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

13 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

14 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

15 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

16 bombers   

n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 )；投弹手；安非他明胶囊；大麻叶香烟

参考例句：

• Enemy bombers carried out a blitz on the city. 敌军轰炸机对这座城市进行了突袭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Royal Airforce sill remained dangerously short of bombers. 英国皇家空军仍未脱离极为缺乏轰炸机的危境。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

18 reins   

感情，激情； 缰( rein的名词复数 )； 控制手段； 掌管； （成人带着幼儿走路以防其走失时用的）保护带

参考例句：

• She pulled gently on the reins. 她轻轻地拉着缰绳。
• The government has imposed strict reins on the import of luxury goods. 政府对奢侈品的进口有严格的控制手段。

19 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。