NPR 2012-04-26

 The US Supreme¹ Court is indicating it may allow Arizona to enforce parts of its immigration law known as SB 1070. That law includes a provision that requires police officers to ask about a person’s immigration status, if he or she’s suspected of being in the US illegally. NPR’s Ted² Robbins reports justices seem skeptical³ of at least some of the Obama administration’s claims against the law.

 

Obama administration’s Solicitor⁴ General Donald Verrilli argued that allowing Arizona to require police to verify a suspect immigration status would interfere⁵ with federal immigration enforcement. At one point though, Justice Sonia Sotomayor, an Obama appointee, told Verrilli “you can see it’s not selling very well.” The justices were not as clear about other blocked provisions of Arizona’s law, including one making it a crime for immigrants to not have registration⁶ papers on them. A Supreme Court ruling is expected in June. Ted Robbins, NPR News.

 

The head of Homeland Security is denouncing as inexcusable the recent prostitution scandal involving Secret Service agents ahead of President Obama’s trip to Columbia. In her Capitol Hill appearance today, Janet Napolitano said eight agents have lost their jobs, one other could be soon out end. Three have been cleared of serious misconduct. Napolitano says she was assured that the president’s security was never at risk.

 

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has decided⁷ to end his run for the White House one day after Mitt⁸ Romney swept five primaries and was dubbed⁹ the presumptive nominee¹⁰ by the chairman of the Republican National Committee. As NPR’s Arnie Seipel reports, Gingrich will drop out next week.

 

A source close to the Gingrich campaign confirms to NPR that the former House speaker will suspend his campaign on Tuesday in Washington DC. Gingrich’s spokesman says his candidate talked with Mitt Romney and Gingrich told Romney he’ll endorse¹¹ him next week. Gingrich had been focusing his efforts on Delaware in recent weeks. He placed a distant second to Romney in the Delaware primary. His best showing in five contests held on Tuesday. Gingrich’s only victory this primary season came in South Carolina and his home state of Georgia. The formal announcement will reportedly not come until next week. So the candidate’s family and staff can be present. Arnie Seipel, NPR News, Washington.

 

Connecticut’s doing away with the death penalty. The governor signed a law today, joining 16 other states in abolishing capital punishment.

 

The Federal Reserve is keeping a key short-term interest rate near-record lows for at least a couple more years, which means it’ll remain cheap for Americans to take out loans. In notes released today, the Fed said the US economy continues to grow moderately with slight improvement in the job market.

 

Before the close on Wall Street, Dow Jones Industrial Average up 89 points at 13,091; NASDAQ gaining 68 points up more than 2% at 3,030; S&P 500 up 19. 

 

This is NPR News.

 

Parts of the Syrian city of Hama are reported to be under a military siege. Yet again activists¹² say there have been dozens more causalities today, reaffirming skepticism that a UN-backed ceasefire will ever fully¹³ kick in. Meanwhile, conditions in refugee camps appear to be getting more difficult. NPR’s Peter Kenyon is in Killis on the border with Turkey.

 

Syrians inside the camps are getting frustrated¹⁴ because it’s harder for them to move, and the smugglers are getting frustrated because it’s getting harder for them even to get across into Syria with equipment and gear. I’m not talking about weapons here. There are still efforts at other border-crossings to smuggle¹⁵ weapons in small amounts, but mainly it’s medical and food and communications equipment that these smugglers are dealing¹⁶ with. 

 

NPR’s Peter Kenyon reporting.

 

The share of mixed race in inter-ethnic married couples grew 28% over the past decade. NPR’s Jennifer Ludden reports on the latest census¹⁷ figures on America’s households and families.

 

Ten percent of all married couples in the US are now of two races or ethnicities, and the share’s even greater among same-sex couples and unmarried partners. Couples living together are increasingly common. The census finds a 41% jump between 2000 and 2010. The census defines families as those related by marriage, birth or adoption¹⁸, and they still make up most households by far, but the census shows non-family households grew twice as fast. Many are people living alone, a group that accounts for nearly half of all households in Washington DC and Atlanta. Jennifer Ludden, NPR News, Washington.

 

I’m Lakshmi Singh, NPR News in Washington.

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 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

3 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

4 solicitor   

n.初级律师，事务律师

参考例句：

• The solicitor's advice gave me food for thought.律师的指点值得我深思。
• The solicitor moved for an adjournment of the case.律师请求将这个案件的诉讼延期。

5 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

6 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 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。

9 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 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。

11 endorse   

vt.(支票、汇票等)背书，背署；批注；同意

参考例句：

• No one is foolish enough to endorse it.没有哪个人会傻得赞成它。
• I fully endorse your opinions on this subject.我完全拥护你对此课题的主张。

12 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

14 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 smuggle   

vt.私运；vi.走私

参考例句：

• Friends managed to smuggle him secretly out of the country.朋友们想方设法将他秘密送出国了。
• She has managed to smuggle out the antiques without getting caught.她成功将古董走私出境，没有被逮捕。

16 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

17 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

18 adoption   

n.采用，采纳，通过；收养

参考例句：

• An adoption agency had sent the boys to two different families.一个收养机构把他们送给两个不同的家庭。
• The adoption of this policy would relieve them of a tremendous burden.采取这一政策会给他们解除一个巨大的负担。