密歇根新闻广播 州长斯奈德应该辞职

 

If Governor Rick Snyder were prime minister of Great Britain, he'd have gone to the palace and resigned this morning. That's because he lost what Parliament would have called a vote of no confidence, and lost it in spectacular fashion.

Both the state House and Senate overwhelmingly voted to override¹ Snyder's vetoes on two bills. There are 90 Republicans in the legislature, and our Republican governor kept the support of precisely² one of them.

This was the first time in sixteen years that a governor's veto has been overridden³, and the first time it's happened to an entire bill in more than forty years. Don't be surprised if it happens again. Snyder's clout⁴ is diminishing by the day.

That's not all that's going to happen to Snyder. Last week his budget director, Al Pscholka, resigned after less than a year on the job. Expect to see a flurry of other cabinet members and top aides resigning soon.

It isn't hard to figure out why. They need jobs.

Snyder is a lame⁵ duck. He'll be gone from politics, power, and Lansing forever next New Year's Day. Given what happened with Flint, it is extremely unlikely that Snyder, who turns sixty this summer, has any political future.

By fall, as this year's campaign heats up, you may not even see his name much in the news. But there is something he could do that would make himself very relevant, something that could dramatically change the course of politics this year – and might help accomplish his aims.

Next Monday, Rick Snyder should resign.

He should say something like, "I have appreciated the opportunity to serve the people and the state of Michigan, but it is time for me to return to private life.”

Suddenly, he would be popular again, and somebody Snyder flatly despises would be shook up. That someone is Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette, who has been running hard for governor for years, and doesn't mind making Snyder look bad.

As things now stand, Schuette is a clear favorite for the nomination⁶. But that could change radically⁷ if suddenly, he's facing not Snyder's colorless understudy but Governor Brian Calley. It is always harder to run against an incumbent⁸.

Democrats⁹ are likely to feel the same way. It might be brief, but Calley would enjoy some kind of honeymoon¹⁰ with the press and public. New governors always do.

There's also an interesting precedent¹¹. Nearly half a century ago, a silver-haired, sixty-year old governor most of the way through his last term resigned in January, turning the office over to his lieutenant¹² governor, who, like Calley, was a thin, dark haired man in his 40s. Few knew much about him, and he was seen as a temporary placeholder.

Democrats were itching¹³ to get the office back and gleeful at the thought of facing the kid in the next election. Almost fourteen years and three elections later, the kid was still there.

His name was William Milliken, and he remains¹⁴ the longest-serving governor in Michigan history. Calley isn't Milliken. Even as an incumbent, he might not be favored in the primary.

But it would sure shake things up. Rick Snyder has about come to the end of his effectiveness as a chief executive. But if he did this, he'd be anything but irrelevant¹⁵ this year.

Jack¹⁶ Lessenberry is Michigan Radio's Senior Political Analyst¹⁷. Views expressed in his essays are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of Michigan Radio, its management or the station licensee, The University of Michigan.

1 override   

vt.不顾，不理睬，否决；压倒，优先于

参考例句：

• The welfare of a child should always override the wishes of its parents.孩子的幸福安康应该永远比父母的愿望来得更重要。
• I'm applying in advance for the authority to override him.我提前申请当局对他进行否决。

2 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

3 overridden   

越控( override的过去分词 )； （以权力）否决； 优先于； 比…更重要

参考例句：

• The chairman's veto was overridden by the committee. 主席的否决被委员会推翻了。
• Property '{0}' is not declarable, and cannot be overridden. 属性“{0}”是不可声明的，不能被重写。

4 clout   

n.用手猛击；权力，影响力

参考例句：

• The queen may have privilege but she has no real political clout.女王有特权，但无真正的政治影响力。
• He gave the little boy a clout on the head.他在那小男孩的头部打了一下。

5 lame   

adj.跛的，(辩解、论据等)无说服力的

参考例句：

• The lame man needs a stick when he walks.那跛脚男子走路时需借助拐棍。
• I don't believe his story.It'sounds a bit lame.我不信他讲的那一套。他的话听起来有些靠不住。

6 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

7 radically   

ad.根本地，本质地

参考例句：

• I think we may have to rethink our policies fairly radically. 我认为我们可能要对我们的政策进行根本的反思。
• The health service must be radically reformed. 公共医疗卫生服务必须进行彻底改革。

8 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

9 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 honeymoon   

n.蜜月（假期）；vi.度蜜月

参考例句：

• While on honeymoon in Bali,she learned to scuba dive.她在巴厘岛度蜜月时学会了带水肺潜水。
• The happy pair are leaving for their honeymoon.这幸福的一对就要去度蜜月了。

11 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。

12 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

13 itching   

adj.贪得的，痒的，渴望的v.发痒( itch的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The itching was almost more than he could stand. 他痒得几乎忍不住了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• My nose is itching. 我的鼻子发痒。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 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。

15 irrelevant   

adj.不恰当的，无关系的，不相干的

参考例句：

• That is completely irrelevant to the subject under discussion.这跟讨论的主题完全不相关。
• A question about arithmetic is irrelevant in a music lesson.在音乐课上，一个数学的问题是风马牛不相及的。

16 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。

17 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。