2006年VOA标准英语-Congressional Field Hearings Focus on US Immigr

By Deborah Tate
Capitol Hill
05 July 2006
 
Members of Congress held coastal¹ field hearings about immigration reform Wednesday on both U.S. coasts.

 
From left: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Sen. Edward Kennedy, and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Arlen Specter 
  
A Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania examined a proposal for a temporary guest worker program - a key provision in the Senate-passed immigration reform bill.

Under the Senate bill, some of the estimated 11, to 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States would have an opportunity to pursue a path to citizenship² if they meet certain conditions.

A House-passed bill does not address the guest worker proposal or prospects³ for citizenship. Instead, it would strengthen border security and designate illegal immigrants as felons⁴ to be deported⁵.

At the Senate hearing, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the economy of his city would collapse⁶ if the estimated 500,000 undocumented workers who provide critical services to city residents were deported.

"A lot of them provide elbow grease [work] to make the traditional industries you talked about - whether it is tourism-related industries of transportation and food and beverage⁷ or home health care or providing a lot of the cleaning services or driving the taxi cabs and those kinds of things," said Michael Bloomberg. "Without them the city could not survive the way it is."

On the other U.S. coast, in San Diego, California, a House subcommittee on international terrorism met to focus on border security.

Chief Border Patrol Agent for the San Diego sector⁸, Darryl Griffin, testified that criminal cartels exploit the border and pose a significant threat to U.S. security.

He made his comments under questioning by Congressman⁹ Darrell Issa, a California Republican.

Issa: "Whether it is drugs or other contraband¹⁰ or people, they do not care; they normally operate in both industries."

Griffin: "That can be an occurrence, yes sir."

Issa: "Therefore, can I presume that they will take people or packages of stuff, they do not really care if there is a dirty bomb in there or an al-Qaida agent. Basically, they move people and bags of things, is that right?"

Griffin: "That would be a correct assumption."

As the congressional field hearings took place, immigration reform was also on President Bush's mind.

Speaking in Alexandria, Virginia, the President renewed his call for Congress to complete comprehensive immigration reform legislation that includes a guest worker proposal.

"I look forward to working with Congress for a temporary worker plan that will have background checks to make sure that people that are coming aren't criminals, that say you can come here for a temporary basis, that you can do work others are not doing, and that is one way to make sure that employers know they are hiring people who are here legally," said President Bush.

The House and Senate must reconcile differences in their two immigration reform bills before a final version is sent to President Bush for his signature. With both chambers¹¹ so far apart on the issue, lawmakers acknowledge negotiations¹² will be difficult.

1 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

2 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

3 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。

4 felons   

n.重罪犯( felon的名词复数 )；瘭疽；甲沟炎；指头脓炎

参考例句：

• Aren't those the seats they use for transporting convicted felons? 这些坐位不是他们用来押运重犯的吗？ 来自电影对白
• House Republicans talk of making felons out of the undocumented and those who help them. 众议院共和党议员正商议对未登记的非法移民以及包庇他们的人课以重罪。 来自互联网

5 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

7 beverage   

n.(水，酒等之外的)饮料

参考例句：

• The beverage is often colored with caramel.这种饮料常用焦糖染色。
• Beer is a beverage of the remotest time.啤酒是一种最古老的饮料。

8 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

9 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。

10 contraband   

n.违禁品，走私品

参考例句：

• Most of the city markets were flooded with contraband goods.大多数的城市市场上都充斥着走私货。
• The customs officers rummaged the ship suspected to have contraband goods.海关人员仔细搜查了一艘有走私嫌疑的海轮。

11 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

12 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。