2007年VOA标准英语-US Lawmaker Says Iraq Troop Surge Hurts Militar

By Dan Robinson
Washington
23 January 2007

The chairman of a key U.S. House committee says President Bush's plan to deploy¹ 21,500 additional troops to Iraq is unacceptable because it would hurt the U.S. military's ability to respond to other crises around the world. Comments by Congressman² Ike Skelton came as two top military commanders testified to Congress on strains on the military. VOA's Dan Robinson reports from Capitol Hill.

Rep. Ike Skelton

The statement by Congressman Skelton, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, came as lawmakers heard from two senior military leaders.

General Peter Schoomaker, Army Chief of Staff, and General James Conway, Commandant of the Marine³ Corps⁴, testified as lawmakers sought their views on the pressures the long deployment⁵ of U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan have placed on the military's flexibility⁶.

Congressman Skelton says he is deeply concerned that increasing the number of U.S. combat brigades in Iraq from 15 to 20 will increase the level of strategic risk and reduce the U.S. ability to respond to other contingencies⁷.

Answering lawmaker's questions, General Schoomaker said while the Army retains sufficient deterrent⁸ capabilities⁹, strains have been considerable. "Recent decisions to expand the Army reflect a clear recognition of the dangers we face and the strain that five years of sustained demand have placed on the all-volunteer force," he said.

General Schoomaker said Congress must provide funds that, in his words, would restore the strategic depth of the Army necessary to respond decisively to potential strategic contingencies.

General Conway had this response when asked the same question about the U.S. military's ability to respond to other trouble spots. "Sir, we feel that there is risk. We feel like we would be able to respond with those forces that are not committed to Iraq or Afghanistan. That the response would be slower than we might like, would not have all of the equipment sets that would ordinarily be the case, and there is certainly risk associated with that," he said.

Although U.S. troops in Iraq are being pushed hard, General Conway said morale¹⁰ remains¹¹ high because they believe they are making a difference and that Americans support them.

Democrats¹², who are in control of Congress, assert that the president's Iraq deployment may place a strain on troop numbers in Afghanistan, a concern shared by many Republicans.

General Schoomaker said none of the troop surge for Iraq, which he calls a "plus-up", is being sourced from U.S. forces on the ground in Afghanistan.

General Conway had this exchange with Democratic Congressman Vic Snyder:

CONWAY: "When I spoke¹³ to the commanders in Afghanistan they were concerned that there is a spring offensive coming and it is their belief that they could some additional troops in Afghanistan."

SNYDER: "Is the surge proposed [in Iraq] going to interfere¹⁴ with our ability to give them the troops that they are requesting?"

CONWAY: "I would say it will impact it, it will not interfere with it to the extent that it would preclude¹⁵ it."

Congressman Skelton says the costs of the additional Iraq deployment in terms of money, troop and family morale, and degradation¹⁶ of training and equipment [are] unacceptable when, in his words, "the potential gains to American national security are so uncertain."

1 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

2 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。

3 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

4 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

5 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

6 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。

7 contingencies   

n.偶然发生的事故，意外事故( contingency的名词复数 )；以备万一

参考例句：

• We must consider all possible contingencies. 我们必须考虑一切可能发生的事。
• We must be prepared for all contingencies. 我们要作好各种准备，以防意外。 来自辞典例句

8 deterrent   

n.阻碍物，制止物；adj.威慑的，遏制的

参考例句：

• Large fines act as a deterrent to motorists.高额罚款是对开车的人的制约。
• I put a net over my strawberries as a deterrent to the birds.我在草莓上罩了网，免得鸟歇上去。

9 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

10 morale   

n.道德准则，士气，斗志

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is sinking lower every day.敌军的士气日益低落。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

11 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

12 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》

13 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

14 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

15 preclude   

vt.阻止，排除，防止；妨碍

参考例句：

• We try to preclude any possibility of misunderstanding.我们努力排除任何误解的可能性。
• My present finances preclude the possibility of buying a car.按我目前的财务状况我是不可能买车的。

16 degradation   

n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变

参考例句：

• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
• Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。