2006年VOA标准英语-Republicans Worry About Recent Scandal's Impact

By Jim Malone
Washington
04 October 2006

A budding scandal in the U.S. Congress and new questions about the war in Iraq have Republicans on the defensive¹ less than five weeks before congressional elections in November.

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Rep. Mark Foley speaks at a news conference in Tallahassee, Florida (File photo)   
  
As the November 7 vote draws near, the battle for control of Congress is intensifying².

A number of political analysts⁴ believe the recent scandal involving former Republican Congressman⁵ Mark Foley of Florida could help Democrats⁶ regain⁷ the House in November.

Foley resigned last week after his inappropriate, sexual e-mail contacts with male congressional pages came to light.  Pages are high school age students chosen to serve as messengers and helpers for members of congress.

Opposition⁸ Democrats are now focused on what Republican congressional leaders knew about Foley's activities and when they found out about them.

House Speaker Dennis Hastert speaks to reporters with Rep. John Shimkus, right, regarding the resignation of Rep. Mark Foley, October 2, 2006   
  
"Every member of Congress who knew that this member was threatening our House pages and others needs to be held accountable," said Democratic Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois.

Republicans are concerned that the Foley scandal could have an impact in November.

A new public opinion poll by NBC News and the Wall Street Journal suggests the Foley revelations are hurting Republican efforts to maintain control of Congress.

Meanwhile, President Bush and his Republican supporters continue to try and keep the election focus on Iraq and the overall war on terrorism.

Campaigning for Republican candidates in California, Mr. Bush warned that the U.S. stance against terrorists would soften⁹ if Democrats gained control of Congress.

President Bush gestures as he speaks during a campaign fundraiser for Representative Richard Pombo  
  
"The stakes are high," president Bush said.  " The Democrats are the party of cut and run.  Ours is the party that has got a clear vision and says we will give our commanders and troops the support necessary to achieve that victory in Iraq.  We will stay in Iraq, we will fight in Iraq and we will win in Iraq."

The Bush White House was put on the defensive last week over the findings of a national intelligence report and revelations in a new book by Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward that raised questions about the administration's handling of the war in Iraq.

Democrats seized on the issue but some analysts question how much impact the debate over the intelligence report and the Woodward book will have on the election.

Karlyn Bowman is a public opinion expert at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington.

"People have already made up their minds about the situation [in Iraq]," she said.  "They made up their minds up a long time ago and I do not think new evidence is going to change that."

Some experts believe that the congressional scandal involving former Representative Foley is potentially far more damaging to Republican prospects¹⁰ in November.

Craig Crawford is a political analyst³ with Congressional Quarterly magazine.

"What this story does is bring back into focus what the Democrats call a culture of corruption¹¹ on Capitol Hill," he explained.  "They can make a case that this was a cover-up, that it was a sign of the abuse of power and the hypocrisy¹² of the party of family values, as Republicans like to present themselves."

Republicans worry that the Foley scandal could undermine their efforts to encourage a strong turnout among conservative Christian¹³ voters in November, traditionally one of the party's most loyal constituencies.

"And I think they are right to worry about that," said polling analyst Karlyn Bowman. "I think that is a concern for Republicans.  They need to turn out their base [conservative voters] to be successful in this election and the events of the last couple of weeks are just not doing a lot to help that."

Democrats need a gain of 15 seats in the House of Representatives and six seats in the Senate to retake control of both chambers¹⁴ for the first time since 1994.

1 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

2 intensifying   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的现在分词 )；增辉

参考例句：

• The allies are intensifying their air campaign. 联军部队正加大他们的空战强度。 来自辞典例句
• The rest of the European powers were in a state of intensifying congestion. 其余的欧洲强国则处于越来越拥挤的状态。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史

3 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。

4 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。

5 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

6 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》

7 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

8 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

9 soften   

v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和

参考例句：

• Plastics will soften when exposed to heat.塑料适当加热就可以软化。
• This special cream will help to soften up our skin.这种特殊的护肤霜有助于使皮肤变得柔软。

10 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

11 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

12 hypocrisy   

n.伪善，虚伪

参考例句：

• He railed against hypocrisy and greed.他痛斥伪善和贪婪的行为。
• He accused newspapers of hypocrisy in their treatment of the story.他指责了报纸在报道该新闻时的虚伪。

13 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

14 chambers   

n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅

参考例句：

• The body will be removed into one of the cold storage chambers. 尸体将被移到一个冷冻间里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Mr Chambers's readable book concentrates on the middle passage: the time Ransome spent in Russia. Chambers先生的这本值得一看的书重点在中间：Ransome在俄国的那几年。 来自互联网