2006年VOA标准英语-Senate Sends Bush Stem Cell Research Bill; Veto

By Deborah Tate
Washington
19 July 2006
 
watch Bush Stem Cell report

The U.S. Senate has approved and sent to President Bush a bill that would allow federal funding of embryonic¹ stem cell research. The president opposes the measure on moral grounds, and is expected to veto it as early as Wednesday.

-------

The Senate passed the legislation on a 63 to 37 vote, with broad bipartisan support.

Supporters say such research is key to medical advances, and that only donated embryos² that would otherwise be thrown away would be used.

"There are some 400,000 frozen embryos, and the choice is discarding them or using them to save lives. Embryonic stem cells have the flexibility³ for the potential of curing Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, heart disease and cancer," said Senator Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican.

But opponents, mostly those who make up the conservative base of the Republican party, argue such research amounts to taking human life because embryos are destroyed in the process.

Senator Sam Brownback, a Kansas Republican, wants donated embryos to be adopted by infertile⁴ couples.

"We have a lot of frozen embryos and we are saying "let's make some utility out of them". Isn't that against human dignity to say 'let's research on this,' when this could be this child?," he said.

President Bush also opposes such research and says he will veto the measure. It would be his first veto since he came to the White House more than five years ago.

Supporters of the measure are urging the president to think twice before taking such action, noting that a majority of Americans support embryonic stem cell research.

"I would suggest to the President, do not kill this bill," said Senator Orrin Hatch, a Utah Republican.

Senator Specter noted⁵ that Nancy Reagan, widow of former President Ronald Reagan, who died of Alzheimer's disease, has been seeking support for the legislation from fellow Republicans. He said she may try to dissuade⁶ President Bush from using his veto.

Supporters of the bill in both the House of Representatives and the Senate acknowledge they do not have the two-thirds majority of their chambers⁷ to override⁸ a veto. The House passed the measure last year.

Members of the Republican majority in the Senate are concerned about the political impact a presidential veto could have on their reelection chances in November. So they offered two other stem-cell related bills that President Bush has signaled he could sign: one would encourage study on stem cells derived⁹ from sources other than embryos and the other would ban the production of embryos solely¹⁰ for stem cell harvest. The Senate passed both, and the House is expected to give swift approval before sending them to the president.

1 embryonic   

adj.胚胎的

参考例句：

• It is still in an embryonic stage.它还处于萌芽阶段。
• The plan,as yet,only exists in embryonic form.这个计划迄今为止还只是在酝酿之中。

2 embryos   

n.晶胚；胚，胚胎( embryo的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Somatic cells of angiosperms enter a regenerative phase and behave like embryos. 被子植物体细胞进入一个生殖阶段，而且其行为象胚。 来自辞典例句
• Evolution can explain why human embryos look like gilled fishes. 进化论能够解释为什么人类的胚胎看起来象除去了内脏的鱼一样。 来自辞典例句

3 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。

4 infertile   

adj.不孕的；不肥沃的，贫瘠的

参考例句：

• Plants can't grow well in the infertile land.在贫瘠的土地上庄稼长不好。
• Nobody is willing to till this infertile land.这块薄田没有人愿意耕种。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 dissuade   

v.劝阻，阻止

参考例句：

• You'd better dissuade him from doing that.你最好劝阻他别那样干。
• I tried to dissuade her from investing her money in stocks and shares.我曾设法劝她不要投资于股票交易。

7 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

8 override   

vt.不顾，不理睬，否决；压倒，优先于

参考例句：

• The welfare of a child should always override the wishes of its parents.孩子的幸福安康应该永远比父母的愿望来得更重要。
• I'm applying in advance for the authority to override him.我提前申请当局对他进行否决。

9 derived   

vi.起源；由来；衍生；导出v.得到( derive的过去式和过去分词 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取

参考例句：

• Many English words are derived from Latin and Greek. 英语很多词源出于拉丁文和希腊文。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He derived his enthusiasm for literature from his father. 他对文学的爱好是受他父亲的影响。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 solely   

adv.仅仅，唯一地

参考例句：

• Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
• The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。