美联社新闻一分钟 2006-04-08

（单词翻译）

1. The finger-pointing continues after senators failed to pass an immigration bill Friday. Supporters of the measure received only 38 of the 60 votes needed to protect it from amendment¹s. The bill offered the hope of citizenship³ to millions of illegal immigrants.

2. President Bush hits new lows in public opinion. An Associated Press-Ipsos survey finds just 36% of the public approves of his job performance. And nearly 70% of Americans believe the nation has headed in a wrong direction.

3. "The Da Vinci Code" author Dan Brown and his publishing house were cleared of copyright infringement⁴ in London Friday. A judge rejected claims Brown stole ideas for the best-selling book from a nonfiction work. Next month a film version of "The Da Vinci Code" hits theaters.

4. There's a goose on the loose. Check out this grumpy bird swoop⁵ing in, attacking customers and employees of a Toys R Us store in Cherry Hill, New Jersey⁷. There are reports the mall-owner is filing paperwork for the USDA to have the goose removed

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. finger-pointing : noun [U]
accusations against someone:
e.g. There's the usual finger-pointing when mistakes are made.

2. amendment :noun [C]
a change to a law that is not yet in operation and is still being discussed:
e.g. An amendment to the bill was agreed without a vote.

3. approve of sth/sb :
to think that someone or something is good, right, or suitable
e.g. I don't approve of cosmetic⁸ surgery.

4. clear :verb [T]
to prove that someone is not guilty of something that they were accused of:
e.g. After many years in prison, the men were finally cleared of the bombings.

5. infringement :noun [U]
the behavior that is against a law or someone's legal rights
e.g. Even minor⁹ infringements¹⁰ of the law will be severely¹¹ punished.

6. grumpy :adjective INFORMAL
easily annoyed and complaining:
e.g. I hadn't had enough sleep and was feeling a bit grumpy.

7. swoop :verb
if a bird or aircraft swoops¹², it moves suddenly down through the air, especially in order to attack something
e.g. The eagle hovered¹³, ready to swoop at any moment.