2006年VOA标准英语-US Senate Confirms Gates as Next Defense Secret

By Deborah Tate
Capitol Hill
06 December 2006

The U.S. Senate has confirmed Robert Gates by a 92-2 vote to be the next secretary of defense¹, with opposition² Democrats⁴ expressing hope he will steer⁵ a new course in the war in Iraq. When he takes the oath of office - expected later this month, Gates will succeed Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who has come under criticism from members of both political parties for his handling of the war. VOA's Deborah Tate reports from Capitol Hill.

Robert Gates at the White House, 8 Nov 2006

A day after the Senate Armed Services Committee approved his nomination⁶, the full Senate late Wednesday easily confirmed Robert Gates, a former director of the Central Intelligence Agency.

Senator John Warner of Virginia, the outgoing Republican chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said Gates would provide President Bush with a fresh and honest perspective about Iraq and other pressing concerns:

"I am confident he will indeed be fearless, absolutely fearless, in providing expert advice, professional advice, his own deep most inner-most personal feelings, about the complex issues that face our nation and indeed the world," he said.

Lawmakers of both parties praised Gates' candor⁷ during confirmation⁸ hearings Tuesday, when he testified that he did not believe the United States was winning the Iraq war. Although he said he did not believe the United States was losing the war, he warned that the conflict could lead to a regional conflagration⁹ if Iraq is not stabilized¹⁰ over the next year or two.

Senate confirmation of Gates came on the same day that the Iraq Study Group, a bipartisan group of experts, released a report concluding that President Bush's policy in Iraq is not working and calling for the withdrawal¹¹ of most U.S. combat troops by early 2008.

Democrats welcomed the recommendations, and called on Gates and President Bush to implement¹² them.

"We will now have a much needed change at the Pentagon," said Senator Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat³. "I know that members on both sides of the aisle¹³ are eager to work with the new secretary to make more changes. But ultimately, it is the president's responsibility."

Members of the Iraq Study Group are to discuss their recommendations at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Thursday.

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 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。

3 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。

4 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》

5 steer   

vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶

参考例句：

• If you push the car, I'll steer it.如果你来推车，我就来驾车。
• It's no use trying to steer the boy into a course of action that suits you.想说服这孩子按你的方式行事是徒劳的。

6 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

7 candor   

n.坦白，率真

参考例句：

• He covered a wide range of topics with unusual candor.他极其坦率地谈了许多问题。
• He and his wife had avoided candor,and they had drained their marriage.他们夫妻间不坦率，已使婚姻奄奄一息。

8 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

9 conflagration   

n.建筑物或森林大火

参考例句：

• A conflagration in 1947 reduced 90 percent of the houses to ashes.1947年的一场大火，使90%的房屋化为灰烬。
• The light of that conflagration will fade away.这熊熊烈火会渐渐熄灭。

10 stabilized   

v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The patient's condition stabilized. 患者的病情稳定下来。
• His blood pressure has stabilized. 他的血压已经稳定下来了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

11 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

12 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

13 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。