CNN 2011-12-16

 A historic moment, a war is ending. A new day is upon us. And let us never forget those who gave us this chance: the untold¹ number of Iraqis who have given their lives, more than I million Americans, military and civilian² who have served in Iraq. Nearly 4500 full of Americans who gave their full measure of devotion, tens of thousands are wounded warriors³ and so many inspiring military families. They are the reason that we can stand here today.

President Barack Obama honoring the people whose efforts and sacrifices helped to bring an official end to the war in Iraq. Saddam Hussein, the former dictator of Iraq was captured 8 years ago today, that was nine months after the war started.

Yesterday, President Obama and Iraqi PM Nouri al-Maliki declared a formal end to the war during a press conference in the white house. They also talked about their countries’ being partners in the future. The last US military troops will be leaving Iraq by the end of this year. President Obama promised PM that the US will give Iraq additional economic, diplomatic and military help.

Later in the day, the two leaders were part of the ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery⁴. They paused for a moment of silence and helped lay a wreath as they paid their respect to the American troops who lost their lives during the war in Iraq.

 

Today Shoutout. Go down to Mr. Breuer’s social studies classes at Milford Junior High School in Milford, Ohio.

In the Us, who has the final authority to decide whether a law is constitutional. Here we go. Is it president, US supreme⁵ court, speaker of the house or de department of justice. You’ve got 3 seconds. Go. That final authority belongs to US Supreme Court. Your shoutout.

Last part if US supreme court were considering about immigration law in Arizona. Controversial part of this law requires Arizona police officers to check people’s immigration status when police are investigating other crimes. The supreme court can look whether or not that other parts of the law are constitutional. But the main question is whether Arizona can enforce this law on its own. The federal government says immigration issues are each responsibility. Arizona’s governor says the US government hasn’t done enough. She also argues that her state’s immigration law supports federal rules. 8 of the 9 supreme court justices were here in this case. Justice Alina Kagen excused herself, because she was working for President Obama’s administration when the government first objected to the Arizona’s law. That means this ruling could end in a 4-4 tie. If that happens it would mean Arizona would not enforce its immigration law. But it wouldn’t give any definitive⁶ answers about whether or not the law is constitutional. That supreme court hearing will be happen sometime next year so will the US president election. But the campaign season dominated headlines this year, and it just one of the topics that Alina Kagen reveals in her look back on some of the big political stories in 2011.

1 untold   

adj.数不清的，无数的

参考例句：

• She has done untold damage to our chances.她给我们的机遇造成了不可估量的损害。
• They suffered untold terrors in the dark and huddled together for comfort.他们遭受着黑暗中的难以言传的种种恐怖，因而只好挤在一堆互相壮胆。

2 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

3 warriors   

武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
• The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。

4 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

5 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

6 definitive   

adj.确切的，权威性的；最后的，决定性的

参考例句：

• This book is the definitive guide to world cuisine.这本书是世界美食的权威指南。
• No one has come up with a definitive answer as to why this should be so.至于为什么该这样，还没有人给出明确的答复。