2007年VOA标准英语-US Congress Hears Many Voices on Iraq

By Dan Robinson
Washington
15 June 2007

As debate continues over Iraq, U.S. lawmakers have heard from a number of voices including U.S. military officials, and current and former U.S. and Iraqi diplomats². VOA's Dan Robinson was present during many of the discussions by some of these figures as the battle of wills between the Democratic-led Congress and President Bush over the war in Iraq continues.

Iraq's Ambassador to US Samir Shakir Mahmoud al-Sumaydi

Iraq's Ambassador to the United States since April of last year, Samir Shakir Mahmoud al-Sumaydi, is no stranger to Capitol Hill, where one side of the test of wills between Congress and President Bush is playing out.

The Iraqi diplomat¹ used an address to a room full of congressional staffers to lay out what he sees as the stakes in Iraq, for Iraqis, the Middle East, the United States and the world.

Iraq he says is at the epicenter of a momumental confrontation⁴ between two universes and two sets of ideology⁵ the outcome of which will have long-lasting impact.

"It is the central line of battle. That is why it is very important what happens in Iraq. It is very important who wins in Iraq, important not only for Iraqis important to every individual in this country. There is a big cost attached to this struggle, but there is likely to be a much bigger cost if it is lost. We have to think of that," he said.

The ambassador's view parallels that of President Bush who describes Iraq as the central battle against al-Qaida, along with Islamist extremism.

Between now and September, the administration and Congress will receive two key reports on progress, or the lack of it, in Iraq and the new joint⁶ Iraqi/U.S. military strategy, reports that could prove decisive.

Against a backdrop of continuing low public approval numbers for President Bush, and Iraq-related politics in the 2008 U.S. presidential contest, Democratic leaders plan to use legislation to transition U.S. forces away from a combat role, and remove the authority lawmakers gave him in 2002 for military action.

Although he prevailed in forcing Democrats⁷ to remove troop withdrawal⁸ language from Iraq funding legislation, cracks in the president's support are seen in statements by Republican leaders that continuing bad news will require the president to change course.

In a VOA interview, North Carolina Republican Sue Myrick says Americans support the cause of democracy in Iraq, but have a limit to their patience as they wait for some sign of progress by Iraq's government in achieving political and economic benchmarks.

"It is their country, they have to be running it, they have to be training their military, they have to stop the sectarian violence, they have to do those things. We are there as backup support and that is what General Petraeus is doing, he is providing the training and backup support. Whether it is going to work or not, I can't tell you. I can just tell you that patience runs very thin and there is a cutoff point for this relative to how much more support we give to them (Iraqis)," she said.

Other voices heard on Capitol Hill include Lieutenant⁹ General Martin Dempsey, former Commanding General of the Multinational¹⁰ Security Transition Command in Iraq.

In describing what he called key capability¹¹ gaps in Iraq's military forces, he said Iraq's leaders are fully¹² aware they cannot rely on the indefinite presence of a sizable U.S. force.

"Everyone understands that there will be a declining U.S. presence at some point, to include the Iraqis understand that and they are beginning to ask me how much bigger should they grow in order to offset¹³ the declining U.S. presence, and the answer to that question is the pace at which we eventually decline," he said.

In separate remarks to Congress recently, President Bush's new coordinator¹⁴ for Iraq and Afghanistan, Lieutenant General Douglas Lute¹⁵, had this observation on the need for Iraqis to seize the moment for political reconciliation¹⁶:

"We are giving them a golden opportunity that they must seize to make progress on the political front. I don't think there is any doubt in the mind of any Iraqi politician that this is an opportunity they have to seize," he said.

This remark by Congressman¹⁷ Roscoe Bartlett provided another example of the signals the administration and U.S. military leaders are receiving from Republicans. "Our constituents¹⁸ are very uneasy with terms like stick it out and stay the course. They have no idea what that means. If that means we are going to be there 50 years from now, like we are in South Korea, they have got no stomach for that sir," he said.

In testimony¹⁹ to the House Foreign Affairs Committee this past week, Former Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleburger, who was a member of the independent Iraq Study Group, said a U.S. withdrawal under what he called adverse²⁰ circumstances would be a serious mistake:

"I think we all have to understand that when and if we leave Iraq on less than satisfactory terms, the consequences for our position in the world, more this time than Vietnam by a long shot, the consequence is something we are going to have to think about and face. If we leave, clearly having been defeated from beginning to end, if we leave under those circumstances, we will not make up for that in terms of the views of the world and in terms of the threats in that part of the world for some period of time," he said.

Iraq's ambassador refers to what he calls a good performance by Iraq's government under fire noting it has succeeded in establishing the foundations of democracy.

Drawing a comparison between sectarian politics and strife²¹ in his country, and divisions in the U.S. over Iraq, he hopes American political leaders can at least agree on the need to finish what the United States started:

"We need the United States, which started the process, to stand firm with us. To abandon the fight now would have consequences as I said which go way beyond our borders, because these people, as far as they are concerned, we are only the appetizer²², the main course is this country," he said.

But in a letter, and face-to-face talks with President Bush, congressional Democrats reiterated²³ their intention to wind down the war, with the goal of bringing U.S. troops home.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke²⁴ after a meeting with the president. "We will be having legislation to repeal²⁵ the president's authority to continue the war in Iraq. We will have legislation that speaks to our vision for stability in the Middle East, which is to redeploy the troops out of combat in a civil war and into fighting al-Qaida, to training the Iraqi troops, for [U.S.] force and diplomatic protection in Iraq and to protect our interests in the region," she said.

After the same meeting, Senate Democrat³ Charles Schumer referred to what he called a great divide in the room during the discussion with the president and his advisers²⁶ on Iraq and the Middle East.

1 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

2 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

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 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

5 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

6 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

7 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》

8 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。

9 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

10 multinational   

adj.多国的，多种国籍的；n.多国籍公司，跨国公司

参考例句：

• The firm was taken over by a multinational consulting firm.这家公司被一个跨国咨询公司收购。
• He analyzed the relationship between multinational corporations and under-developed countries.他分析了跨国公司和不发达国家之间的关系。

11 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

12 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

13 offset   

n.分支，补偿；v.抵消，补偿

参考例句：

• Their wage increases would be offset by higher prices.他们增加的工资会被物价上涨所抵消。
• He put up his prices to offset the increased cost of materials.他提高了售价以补偿材料成本的增加。

14 coordinator   

n.协调人

参考例句：

• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。
• How am I supposed to find the client-relations coordinator? 我怎么才能找到客户关系协调员的办公室？

15 lute   

n.琵琶，鲁特琴

参考例句：

• He idly plucked the strings of the lute.他漫不经心地拨弄着鲁特琴的琴弦。
• He knows how to play the Chinese lute.他会弹琵琶。

16 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

17 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。

18 constituents   

n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素

参考例句：

• She has the full support of her constituents. 她得到本区选民的全力支持。
• Hydrogen and oxygen are the constituents of water. 氢和氧是水的主要成分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 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。

20 adverse   

adj.不利的；有害的；敌对的，不友好的

参考例句：

• He is adverse to going abroad.他反对出国。
• The improper use of medicine could lead to severe adverse reactions.用药不当会产生严重的不良反应。

21 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

22 appetizer   

n.小吃，开胃品

参考例句：

• We served some crackers and cheese as an appetizer.我们上了些饼干和奶酪作为开胃品。
• I would like a cucumber salad for an appetizer.我要一份黄瓜沙拉作开胃菜。

23 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。

24 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。

25 repeal   

n.废止，撤消；v.废止，撤消

参考例句：

• He plans to repeal a number of current policies.他计划废除一些当前的政策。
• He has made out a strong case for the repeal of the law.他提出强有力的理由，赞成废除该法令。

26 advisers   

顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• a member of the President's favoured circle of advisers 总统宠爱的顾问班子中的一员
• She withdrew to confer with her advisers before announcing a decision. 她先去请教顾问然后再宣布决定。