2007年VOA标准英语-Bush Lobbies for Immigration Reform in Radio Ad

By Scott Stearns
White House
23 June 2007

President Bush is lobbying for an immigration reform bill in Congress that has already been defeated once by members of his own party. VOA White House Correspondent Scott Stearns reports, opposition¹ Democrats² are pushing the president to spend more on benefits for military veterans.

President Bush, 10 Jun 2007

Changing American immigration law is the president's biggest legislative³ goal of the year. The major obstacle so far has been fellow Republicans who oppose bipartisan legislation because they say it amounts to amnesty for immigrants who have entered the country illegally.

With debate on the measure set to resume in the coming week, President Bush used his Saturday radio address to again defend the deal, saying it does not reward illegal immigration.

"Once the border security and worksite enforcement benchmarks are met, the bill will resolve the status of 12 million people who are now in our country illegally," said Mr. Bush.  "Under this bill, these workers will be given an opportunity to get right with the law. This is not amnesty. There will be penalties for those who come out of the shadows."

Illegal immigrants would have to pass a background check, pay a fine, hold a job, maintain a clean criminal record, and eventually learn English to qualify for a visa. If they want a green card, or permanent U.S. residence, the bill says they would have to pay an additional fine and return to their country to apply from there.

Despite those requirements, Senate Republicans blocked the bill two weeks ago. A CBS News/New York Times poll says the issue splits the president's political party: 41 percent approve of his handling of the issue; 47 percent oppose it.

Some Republicans want tougher law enforcement at the border, so Mr. Bush endorsed⁴ an amendment⁵ that has more than four billion dollars in immediate⁶ funding for border security to be paid by fines and fees collected from illegal immigrants.

In his radio address, the president highlighted the bill's enforcement provisions including barring people caught crossing the border illegally from ever returning to the United States on a work or tourist visa.

"We have an obligation to solve problems that have been piling up for decades," he added.  "The status quo is unacceptable.  We must summon the political courage to move forward with a comprehensive reform bill."

In the Democratic radio address, Texas Congressman⁷ Chet Edwards said President Bush and Republican members of Congress have put a higher priority on tax cuts for the wealthy than they have on health care for military veterans.

The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives passed the largest ever increase in veterans' health care funding this past week: a six-billion-dollar increase for 2008. That is nearly $4 billion more than the president asked for in his budget.

"For weeks, the White House budget office threatened to veto this bill because it was above their request," he said.  "Fortunately, the president finally backed down on the threat to this historic veterans' bill but only after it was clear Congress would override⁸ a veto."

President Bush says he will veto other spending bills that exceed his budget requests, including a $37 billion budget for the Department of Homeland Security that is $2 billion more than he asked for.

1 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

2 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》

3 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

4 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 amendment   

n.改正，修正，改善，修正案

参考例句：

• The amendment was rejected by 207 voters to 143.这项修正案以207票对143票被否决。
• The Opposition has tabled an amendment to the bill.反对党已经就该议案提交了一项修正条款。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 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。

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。