2006年VOA标准英语-Democratic Gains Alter Balance of Power in Wash

By Jim Malone
08 November 2006

The shock waves from Democratic Party victories in the congressional midterm elections continued to rock Washington Wednesday. President Bush announced he is replacing Defense¹ Secretary Donald Rumsfeld as Democrats² called for a new approach to the war in Iraq.

With Democrats now controlling a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives for the first time since 1994, Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi left little doubt that her party will seek a fresh approach on Iraq in the months ahead.

"We must not continue on this catastrophic path and so, hopefully, we can work with the president for a new direction, one that solves the problems in Iraq," she said.

 
From left: Donald Rumsfeld, George Bush and Robert Gates 
President Bush agreed on the need for a "fresh perspective" on Iraq as he announced at a news conference that he was replacing Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who has long been the focus of Democratic criticism over the administration's Iraq policy.

Former CIA Director Robert Gates has been chosen to replace Rumsfeld.

But the president was also quick to dispel³ any notion of a major shift on Iraq in the wake of Democratic gains in the election.

Mr. Bush said he is open to cooperating with Democrats on improving the situation in Iraq provided they share his ultimate goal.

 
President Bush holds news conference at White House, Nov. 8, 2006  
"Some of the comments I read said, look, we need a different approach to make sure we can succeed. You can find common ground there. See, if the goal is success, then we can work together. If the goal is get out now regardless, then it is going to be hard to work together," he said.

Both parties acknowledge that public discontent over the war in Iraq was the major factor driving Democratic gains in the House of Representatives and Senate.

"This was a very significant victory for the Democrats and they deserved it based on a lot of hard work," said analyst⁴ Larry Sabato, who directs the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. "But it was also delivered to them by President Bush and his unpopularity and the unpopularity of the Iraq war."

Many experts predict it will be difficult for the president and his newly energized⁵ Democratic rivals to find common ground on Iraq.

 "I think the big picture is a change in tone. Certainly Democrats and some other outside forces like the Iraq Study Group [headed by former Secretary of State James Baker] are going to be putting forward some alternatives that may put some significant pressure on the president," said John Fortier, a longtime observer of U.S. politics at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington. "But at the end of the day, the president is the commander in chief and has much more say over foreign policy than do these other institutions and we will see how he takes that advice and whether he is changing course significantly, or just in a small way."

The shifting political landscape in Washington will have an impact on the final two years of Mr. Bush's presidency⁶ in significant ways beyond Iraq.

Analyst Larry Sabato says it will also be a test of the president's willingness to compromise with Democrats.

"His [President Bush's] domination of American politics is now officially over. He cannot control appointments anymore, at least the ones that go through the Senate. He cannot control appropriations⁷ [funding], because they originate in the House [of Representatives]. And he is going to have to do something that he is not very good at doing, which is compromising," he said.

Democrats will face their share of challenges in the months ahead, including convincing voters that they can compete with Republicans as guardians⁸ of national security.

It is also possible that divisions among Democrats could emerge between veteran liberal lawmakers looking to exact some measure of political revenge from the administration, and newly elected moderate Democrats who may push for compromise with Republicans.

 
Nancy Pelosi, Nov. 8, 2006 
Tim Curran is editor in chief of Roll Call, a newspaper that covers Congress. He says Nancy Pelosi, expected to be the Democratic speaker of the House, could be pulled in different directions by some of her fellow Democrats.

"She is going to have to be very cautious about how far to the left she is going to lead her troops. I think Pelosi and some of the other Democratic leaders in the House have already signaled that they are going to be cautious about that," he said.

One issue that may benefit from the prospect⁹ of divided government is immigration reform. Many Republicans opposed President Bush's effort to include a guest worker program as part of any effort to crack down on illegal immigration. Mr. Bush could find some new allies for his approach among the increased numbers of Democrats who will be going to Congress in January.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 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》

3 dispel   

vt.驱走，驱散，消除

参考例句：

• I tried in vain to dispel her misgivings.我试图消除她的疑虑，但没有成功。
• We hope the programme will dispel certain misconceptions about the disease.我们希望这个节目能消除对这种疾病的一些误解。

4 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。

5 energized   

v.给予…精力，能量( energize的过去式和过去分词 )；使通电

参考例句：

• We are energized by love if we put our energy into loving. 如果我们付出能量去表现爱意，爱就会使我们充满活力。 来自辞典例句
• I am completely energized and feeling terrific. 我充满了活力，感觉非常好。 来自辞典例句

6 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

7 appropriations   

n.挪用（appropriation的复数形式）

参考例句：

• More commonly, funding controls are imposed in the annual appropriations process. 更普遍的作法是，拨款控制被规定在年度拨款手续中。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• Should the president veto the appropriations bill, it goes back to Congress. 假如总统否决了这项拨款提案，就把它退还给国会。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

8 guardians   

监护人( guardian的名词复数 )； 保护者，维护者

参考例句：

• Farmers should be guardians of the countryside. 农民应是乡村的保卫者。
• The police are guardians of law and order. 警察是法律和秩序的护卫者。

9 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。