NPR 2012-01-19

 The GOP-led House is likely to vote against an increase in the debt ceiling today, but that's not expected to go far in the Democratic-run Senate and with the threat of a presidential veto. NPR's Andrea Seabrook is on Capitol Hill. She says the House's actions on this debt limit bill is largely symbolic¹.

 

When the Congress couldn't agree within itself and with the president on how and whether to raise the debt ceiling, they created this new sort of procedure that allows the president to raise the debt ceiling on his own, and the Republicans or anyone else in Congress can disapprove² of that action without it actually forcing a standoff in the budget.

 

That's NPR's Andrea Seabrook.

 

Well, the presidential candidates are busy campaigning in South Carolina ahead of that state's primary on Saturday. Since 1980, the winner of the GOP primary in that state has gone on to win the Republican nomination³. As NPR's Tamara Keith reports, one of the contenders Newt Gingrich is asking voters to help him win South Carolina.

 

In a way, Gingrich's pitch sounds like a last stand. If he doesn't win South Carolina, he says former Massachusetts Governor Mitt⁴ Romney will lock up the nomination, though Gingrich argues that could hand President Obama another four years. But Gingrich says if he does win on Saturday, he will be the nominee⁵.

 

"And we will beat Obama virtually everywhere in this country. There will be no safe state, and it will be a very different election than anybody expects."

 

Romney and the other candidates vying⁶ for votes don't necessarily agree with this analysis. Tamara Keith, NPR News, Columbia, South Carolina.

 

Hungary confirms one of its citizens was among at least 11 people killed on the shipwrecked Costa Concordia Friday. The victim, a 38-year-old violinist, was the first among the dead to be identified.

 

In Pakistan, a political crisis reaches another juncture⁷ tomorrow when the prime minister appears before the Supreme⁸ Court. NPR's Julie McCarthy reports from Islamabad that the courtroom drama could help determine the fate of the country's increasingly embattled government.

 

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani appears before a seven-member bench to explain why he shouldn't be held in contempt of court. Pakistan's increasingly assertive⁹ Supreme Court is furious at Gilani's government for its refusal to implement¹⁰ an earlier verdict that ordered the reopening of a money laundering¹¹ case implicating¹² President Asif Ali Zardari. But the lead attorney for the prime minister suggested a way out of the impasse¹³ that could defuse tensions. He said there was no harm in asking the Swiss authorities who first brought the money laundering case against Zardari to revive it, because, he says, he has complete immunity¹⁴ as long as he's president. Julie McCarthy, NPR News, Islamabad.

 

This is NPR News.

 

The National Weather Service has scaled back the snow totals expected from a massive winter storm bearing down on the Pacific Northwest. But forecasters still expect significant snowfall to hit the western part of Washington state and Oregon. From member station KUOW in Seattle, Patricia Murphy has details.

 

About 30,000 customers are without power in and around Portland, Oregon this morning. The storm moved in last night and is expected to dump up to two feet of snow in the mountains, about six inches in the city of Seattle. Skiers may be sad, but air travelers be warned, says Sea-Tac airport spokesman Perry Cooper.

 

"The airlines have had proactive cancellations at this point, so our recommendations to the passengers and travelers are to check with their airline to see whether or not your specific flight has been affected¹⁵."

 

Several downtown Seattle hotels are full, as are many around the airport. Elsewhere, shoppers stocked up on groceries. The last snowstorm like this knocked out power here for a week. For NPR News, I'm Patricia Murphy in Seattle.

 

As of this morning, about 30,000 Oregon households in the Portland metro¹⁶ area had no electricity, following again a winter storm overnight. Those mostly affected were mainly in Gresham, Oregon City and western Portland.

 

California Governor Jerry Brown is asking voters to decide between higher taxes and deeper cuts in critical government functions including public education. In his State of the State address, the Democratic proposes a temporary tax hike to the wealthy in California sales tax to help reduce budget deficits¹⁷. He's been trying to gather support for a November ballot¹⁸ initiative on taxes.

 

At last check, Dow was up more than 60 points.

1 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

2 disapprove   

v.不赞成，不同意，不批准

参考例句：

• I quite disapprove of his behaviour.我很不赞同他的行为。
• She wants to train for the theatre but her parents disapprove.她想训练自己做戏剧演员，但她的父母不赞成。

3 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。

4 mitt   

n.棒球手套，拳击手套，无指手套；vt.铐住，握手

参考例句：

• I gave him a baseball mitt for his birthday.为祝贺他的生日，我送给他一只棒球手套。
• Tom squeezed a mitt and a glove into the bag.汤姆把棒球手套和手套都塞进袋子里。

5 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。

6 vying   

adj.竞争的；比赛的

参考例句：

• California is vying with other states to capture a piece of the growing communications market.为了在日渐扩大的通讯市场分得一杯羹，加利福尼亚正在和其他州展开竞争。
• Four rescue plans are vying to save the zoo.4个拯救动物园的方案正争得不可开交。

7 juncture   

n.时刻，关键时刻，紧要关头

参考例句：

• The project is situated at the juncture of the new and old urban districts.该项目位于新老城区交界处。
• It is very difficult at this juncture to predict the company's future.此时很难预料公司的前景。

8 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。

9 assertive   

adj.果断的，自信的，有冲劲的

参考例句：

• She always speaks an assertive tone.她总是以果断的语气说话。
• China appears to have become more assertive in the waters off its coastline over recent years.在近些年，中国显示出对远方海洋的自信。

10 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

11 laundering   

n.洗涤（衣等），洗烫（衣等）；洗（钱）v.洗（衣服等），洗烫（衣服等）( launder的现在分词 )；洗（黑钱）（把非法收入改头换面，变为貌似合法的收入）

参考例句：

• Separate the white clothes from the dark clothes before laundering. 洗衣前应当把浅色衣服和深色衣服分开。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He was charged with laundering money. 他被指控洗钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 implicating   

vt.牵涉，涉及（implicate的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• He was in the public dock, confessing everything, implicating everybody. 他站在被告席上，什么都招认，什么人都咬。 来自英汉文学
• No one would have had me get out of the scrape by implicating an old friend. 无论什么人都不能叫我为了自己摆脱困难便把一个老朋友牵累到这案子里去。 来自辞典例句

13 impasse   

n.僵局；死路

参考例句：

• The government had reached an impasse.政府陷入绝境。
• Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。

14 immunity   

n.优惠；免除；豁免，豁免权

参考例句：

• The law gives public schools immunity from taxation.法律免除公立学校的纳税义务。
• He claims diplomatic immunity to avoid being arrested.他要求外交豁免以便避免被捕。

15 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

16 metro   

n.地铁；adj.大都市的；(METRO)麦德隆(财富500强公司之一总部所在地德国，主要经营零售)

参考例句：

• Can you reach the park by metro?你可以乘地铁到达那个公园吗？
• The metro flood gate system is a disaster prevention equipment.地铁防淹门系统是一种防灾设备。

17 deficits   

n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 )；赤字；亏空；亏损

参考例句：

• The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 财政部一贯高估预算赤字。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上许多农民还在遭受经济上的亏损。 来自辞典例句

18 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。