2007年VOA标准英语-Ex-Aide Disputes US Attorney General's Statemen

By Deborah Tate
Washington
29 March 2007

A former U.S. Justice Department aide says Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was involved in the firing of federal prosecutors², contradicting statements made by the nation's top law enforcement official. His testimony³ to a Senate panel comes amid bipartisan calls for Gonzales' resignation for his handling of the matter. VOA's Deborah Tate reports from Capitol Hill.

Mar1 2007" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070529/1054050.jpg" width="183" vspace="2" border="0" />

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' former Chief of Staff Kyle Sampson testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, 29 Mar 2007

Testifying voluntarily and under oath before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the former chief of staff to Alberto Gonzales, Kyle Sampson, took issue with the attorney general's statement earlier this month that he was not involved in discussions about the replacement⁴ of eight federal prosecutors. "I do not think the attorney general's statement that he was not involved in any discussions about U.S. attorney removals is accurate," he said.

Sampson said Gonzales attended a meeting about the matter on November 27 of last year, just days before the attorneys were ousted⁵.

The former aide, who resigned earlier this month, said he had shared information with Justice Department officials about the dismissals last year, despite arguments to the contrary by the attorney general. He said Gonzales signed off on the decision to remove the attorneys. "The attorney general approved the list," he said.

The Democratic-led Judiciary Committee is probing whether the Bush administration misled Congress about the reasons for the dismissals and whether they were politically motivated and aimed at intimidating⁷ other attorneys.

Senator Patrick Leahy, a Vermont Democrat⁶, is chairman of the panel. "I want the American people to have confidence in federal law enforcement and I want our federal law enforcement officers to have the independence they need to be effective and to consistently merit the trust of the American people," he said.

The top Republican on the committee, Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, offered his own harsh assessment⁸ of the handling of the attorney firings. "It is generally acknowledged that the Department of Justice is in a state of disrepair, perhaps even dysfunctional, because of what has happened," he said.

Sampson defended the decision to replace the attorneys, saying it was based on legitimate⁹ reasons relating to their performance, although he acknowledged such reasons could also be perceived as political.

Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, said he saw nothing wrong with the dismissals. "What I have heard, there is no evidence that any of this replacement of U.S. attorneys was designed to or actually did impede¹⁰ a criminal investigation¹¹ or prosecution," he said.

Attorney General Gonzales is scheduled to appear before the committee next month.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino reiterated¹² that President Bush has confidence in his attorney general.

1 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

2 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

3 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

4 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

5 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

6 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。

7 intimidating   

vt.恐吓，威胁( intimidate的现在分词)

参考例句：

• They were accused of intimidating people into voting for them. 他们被控胁迫选民投他们的票。
• This kind of questioning can be very intimidating to children. 这种问话的方式可能让孩子们非常害怕。

8 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

9 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

10 impede   

v.妨碍，阻碍，阻止

参考例句：

• One shouldn't impede other's progress.一个人不应该妨碍他人进步。
• The muddy roads impede our journey.我们的旅游被泥泞的道路阻挠了。

11 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

12 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

13 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。

14 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。