NPR 2010-07-01

From NPR News in Washington, I'm Lakshmi Singh.

Senators are wrapping up their questioning of Supreme¹ Court nominee² Elena Kagan. NPR's Carrie Johnson reports on the friction³ in the hearing room.

Republican lawmakers press Elena Kagan for a third day on her treatment of military recruiters at Harvard Law School. Conservatives say Kagan gave the military less access than other employers because she disliked the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy toward gay service members, but Kagan's allies in the White House and elsewhere are speaking out to support her respect for the military. Alabama Republican Jeff Sessions is not one of those supporters.

"The White House has been spinning that story inaccurately⁵ and I believe your testimony⁶ was too consistent with an inaccurate⁴ spin and didn't, frankly⁷, set forth⁸ what you did."

Republicans are also using this week's hearings to test Kagan's approach to healthcare regulation, abortion⁹ and gun ownership, but Senate leaders say they have the votes to confirm Kagan. Carrie Johnson, NPR News, Washington.

General David Petraeus is confirmed with unanimous backing from the Senate today. He takes over his top US commander in Afghanistan from General Stanley McChrystal, who President Obama fired for speaking ill of top administration officials in a recent Rolling Stone magazine article. The latest now from NPR's David Welna.

Just before the vote, Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin noted¹⁰ on the Senate floor that General Petraeus has endorsed¹¹ President Obama's decision to begin drawing down troops from Afghanistan a year from now.

"He agrees with that decision that we need to begin reductions in July of 2011 of our troops as a way of sending a powerful message to the Afghan leadership about their responsibility to provide security for their own country."

But Arizona Republican John McCain still rejects any planned withdrawal¹² from Afghanistan.

"To announce a date for withdrawal, is to announce a date for defeat."

It now appears unlikely Congress will meet the July 4th deadline, Defense¹³ Secretary Robert Gates said, to provide emergency funding for the war in Afghanistan. David Welna, NPR News, the Capitol.

President Obama's working to rally public support for a financial overhaul¹⁴ bill before Congress. He held a town hall meeting in Racine, Wisconsin, where the unemployment rate has hit nearly 10%.

It's coming down hard on parts of the Mexican border with southern Texas. Rain and strong winds in South Padre Island, courtesy of Hurricane Alex. The storm's forecast to make landfall possibly as a stronger Category 2 in northeastern Mexico late tonight or early tomorrow. Alex, the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season remains¹⁵ far to the southwest of major US offshore¹⁶ facilities, but some energy companies have shut down oil and gas production in the Gulf¹⁷ and evacuated¹⁸ personnel.

Last check on Wall Street, Dow was down nearly 100 points.

This is NPR News.

A big upset today in the men's quarterfinals at Wimbledon, top seed Roger Federer lost to Tomas Berdych, who appeared stunned¹⁹ by what he'd accomplished²⁰.

"If I can just, you know, go through, well, I will take my career. I think it was the, so far the toughest game to, to serve and close out the match so. You know, it was many conditions playing, you know, around then, but, you know, this one just can move me ahead and it's, well, pretty happy for it."

Rafael Nadal beat Robin²¹ Soderling and Andy Murray has advanced.

In Nigeria, widespread bitterness over the national soccer team's poor performance in this year's World Cup already having serious repercussions²². NPR's Gwen Tompkins reports that Nigeria's president has suspended the team from international competition for the next two years.

National shame never sits well on any population, and Nigeria apparently²³ won't stand for it. Nigeria's Super Eagles lost to every team they played in this year's World Cup, except for South Korea, with whom they tied. The Nigerians placed at the bottom of the first round and failed to advance. The nation's soccer federation²⁴ issued a public apology Wednesday, but that wasn't enough. President Goodluck Jonathan says the team must be rebuilt. And that means learning better moves, better discipline and better sportsmanship. Toward that end, Nigeria's government will reportedly hire a psychologist to help team members channel their aggression²⁵ into scoring goals. Gwen Tompkins, NPR News, Nairobi.

Demand for buying homes hits a nearly 13-year low in the US. Some Mortgage Bankers Association's snapshot of purchases last week reaffirms what analysts²⁶ have been warning that the housing market is slowing down again. And taking its tour on Wall Street, Dow's down 100

1 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。

2 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。

3 friction   

n.摩擦，摩擦力

参考例句：

• When Joan returned to work,the friction between them increased.琼回来工作后，他们之间的摩擦加剧了。
• Friction acts on moving bodies and brings them to a stop.摩擦力作用于运动着的物体，并使其停止。

4 inaccurate   

adj.错误的，不正确的，不准确的

参考例句：

• The book is both inaccurate and exaggerated.这本书不但不准确，而且夸大其词。
• She never knows the right time because her watch is inaccurate.她从来不知道准确的时间因为她的表不准。

5 inaccurately   

不精密地，不准确地

参考例句：

• The money mechanism began to work stiffly and inaccurately. 贷币机构开始周转不灵和不准确了。
• Court records reveal every day how inaccurately "eyewitnesses'see. 法庭记录每天都显露出“见证人”看得多不准确。

6 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

7 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

8 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

9 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。

10 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

11 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

13 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。

14 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。

15 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。

16 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

17 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

18 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

19 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。

20 accomplished   

adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的

参考例句：

• Thanks to your help,we accomplished the task ahead of schedule.亏得你们帮忙,我们才提前完成了任务。
• Removal of excess heat is accomplished by means of a radiator.通过散热器完成多余热量的排出。

21 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

22 repercussions   

n.后果，反响( repercussion的名词复数 )；余波

参考例句：

• The collapse of the company will have repercussions for the whole industry. 这家公司的垮台将会给整个行业造成间接的负面影响。
• Human acts have repercussions far beyond the frontiers of the human world. 人类行为所产生的影响远远超出人类世界的范围。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

24 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

25 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

26 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。