2006年VOA标准英语-Latest US Polls Show Dissatisfaction with Congr

By Dan Robinson
Washington
20 October 2006

Public opinion polls show Americans are increasingly frustrated¹ with the job members of Congress are doing, less than three weeks before the November 7 mid-term legislative² elections. The latest numbers are also another blow to Republicans in particular as they fight to maintain control of Congress, and try to limit the damage from ethics³ controversies⁴.

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In a NBC/Wall Street Journal poll, 75 percent of those surveyed disapprove⁵ of how lawmakers are doing their job, versus⁶ only 16 percent approval. A Gallup poll has a 71 to 23 percent margin⁷ on the same question.

Despite the overwhelming picture these paint of Congress as a whole, the numbers bring more bad news for Republicans when it comes to specific job approval ratings.

Only 36 percent of those surveyed in a CNN poll said the policies of Republicans are moving the country in the right direction, with 53 percent favoring Democrats⁹.

Since the beginning of October, the NBC/Wall Street Journal survey shows a four percentage point increase in the number of respondents saying Democrats should control Congress after the November 7th election, with Democrats favored 52 to 37 percent.

Interesting results also emerge from polls attempting to measure the impact of the scandal involving former Republican Congressman¹⁰ Mark Foley, who resigned after the revelation of sexually explicit¹¹ email and other messages he had sent to teenage male congressional interns¹².

Many disapprove of how Republican leaders handled the affair, with polls reflecting a belief Republicans initially¹³ tried to cover up the matter and are generally weak when it comes to ethical¹⁴ standards.

However, one earlier CNN poll shows 65 percent saying the Foley scandal would have no effect on chances they would vote Republican, versus 27 percent responding in the affirmative.

And the Foley scandal and ethical issues still rank below terrorism, the war in Iraq, the economy and North Korea in numerous polls ahead of the election.

Nevertheless, Tom Fitton of Judicial¹⁵ Watch says public confidence in Congress has plummeted¹⁶ in response not only to the Foley matter, but the Abramoff lobbying scandal and other controversies. "These are enormous scandals. They are corrosive¹⁷. They undermine the government's ability to function, and they undermine the public's trust in Congress," he said.

Republicans are in a difficult spot as a congressional ethics panel continues its inquiry¹⁸ into how they responded to the Foley matter.

If the committee finds that House leaders acted appropriately, Republicans may get a boost. Failure to issue a report before November 7th, or negative findings, would further hurt Republicans.

On Thursday, the bipartisan panel heard from two key witnesses - Jeff Trandahl, the former House Clerk, and Republican leader John Boehner, who asserts the Foley matter is not effecting Republican candidates. "It does not appear to be affecting any of our races in any way. I think most Americans care about how much they are paying in taxes, what we have done on border security, and most importantly what we are doing to make sure that our country is safe from attacks from terrorists," Boehner said.

As that indicates, Republicans would like to turn public attention away from the Foley scandal, while warning voters what they might expect if they vote for Democrats.

But most political analysts¹⁹ see little light in the tunnel at this stage for Republicans.

Charles Hurt of the Washington Times says the Foley scandal may have alienated²⁰ conservatives Republicans need to remain in power on Capitol Hill. "In an election like this one where the one thing I think everyone aggress upon is that we are looking at a one or two seat, a handful of people making the difference in the majorities both in the House and the Senate, you throw one or two or three seats one way or the other and you change power in Washington in November," he said.

Appearing at the same panel discussion in Washington, Stephen Hess of the Brookings Institution cautions corruption²¹ and ethics are a risky²² issue for Democrats as well. "These are not about one party. There is no party that has a monopoly on corruption. These are not Democrat⁸ or Republican, these are Democrat and Republican," he said.

As they endure the Foley scandal and pessimistic polling numbers, Republicans moved quickly this week to take advantage of recent economic news, with the key Dow Jones Industrials closing above 12-thousand for the first time.

Democrats responded by pointing to record deficits²³ and national debt under Republicans, and gained additional ammunition²⁴ from more bad news from Iraq, as they continue to hammer away on congressional ethics.

1 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》

2 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

3 ethics   

n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准

参考例句：

• The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
• Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。

4 controversies   

争论

参考例句：

• We offer no comment on these controversies here. 对于这些争议，我们在这里不作任何评论。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• The controversies surrounding population growth are unlikely to subside soon. 围绕着人口增长问题的争论看来不会很快平息。 来自辞典例句

5 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。

6 versus   

prep.以…为对手，对；与…相比之下

参考例句：

• The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
• The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。

7 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。

8 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

9 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》

10 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。

11 explicit   

adj.详述的，明确的；坦率的；显然的

参考例句：

• She was quite explicit about why she left.她对自己离去的原因直言不讳。
• He avoids the explicit answer to us.他避免给我们明确的回答。

12 interns   

n.住院实习医生( intern的名词复数 )v.拘留，关押( intern的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Our interns also greet our guests when they arrive in our studios. 我们的实习生也会在嘉宾抵达演播室的时候向他们致以问候。 来自超越目标英语 第4册
• The interns work alongside experienced civil engineers and receive training in the different work sectors. 实习生陪同有经验的国内工程师工作，接受不同工作部门的相关培训。 来自超越目标英语 第4册

13 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

14 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

15 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

16 plummeted   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Share prices plummeted to an all-time low. 股票价格暴跌到历史最低点。
• A plane plummeted to earth. 一架飞机一头栽向地面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 corrosive   

adj.腐蚀性的；有害的；恶毒的

参考例句：

• Many highly corrosive substances are used in the nuclear industry.核工业使用许多腐蚀性很强的物质。
• Many highly corrosive substances are used in the nuclear industry.核工业使用许多腐蚀性很强的物质。

18 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

19 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。

20 alienated   

adj.感到孤独的，不合群的v.使疏远( alienate的过去式和过去分词 )；使不友好；转让；让渡（财产等）

参考例句：

• His comments have alienated a lot of young voters. 他的言论使许多年轻选民离他而去。
• The Prime Minister's policy alienated many of her followers. 首相的政策使很多拥护她的人疏远了她。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 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。

22 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

23 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

24 ammunition   

n.军火，弹药

参考例句：

• A few of the jeeps had run out of ammunition.几辆吉普车上的弹药已经用光了。
• They have expended all their ammunition.他们把弹药用光。