2007年VOA标准英语-Fukuda Elected Japanese Prime Minister

By Heda Bayron
Hong Kong
25 September 2007

Veteran lawmaker, Yasuo Fukuda, has been elected Japan's new prime minister.  VOA's Heda Bayron reports from our Asia News Center in Hong Kong.

Japan's powerful lower house of Parliament, dominated by the Liberal Democratic Party, voted overwhelmingly in favor of Yasuo Fukuda.  His closest competitor was the opposition¹ candidate, Ichiro Ozawa.

The 71-year-old Mr. Fukuda was installed without the endorsement² of the opposition-led upper house of Parliament.  But under Japanese parliamentary rules, the vote of the lower house overrides³ that of the upper house.

Mr. Fukuda, who is seen as a moderate, replaces the hawkish⁴ Shinzo Abe, who resigned on September 12 after the LDP's massive defeat in July elections.  Mr. Abe apologized Monday for abruptly⁵ resigning and said he did so only because of his deteriorating⁶ health.

The split decision of Japan's parliament foreshadows the challenges facing Japan's new leader, particularly the need to find a way to work with the opposition.

Mr. Fukuda also inherits the task of restoring public confidence in government, and in the LDP, after a series of financial scandals.

Mr. Fukuda is the eldest⁷ son of former prime minister Takeo Fukuda and served as chief Cabinet secretary under Junichiro Koizumi.

International University of Japan Political Science Professor Tomohito Shinoda says Mr. Fukuda's experience as Cabinet secretary equips him to serve as the nation's leader.

"So he knows the ... challenges and difficulties we are facing both in domestic affairs and foreign affairs," Shinoda said. "That is his strength."

Mr. Fukuda retained many of his predecessor's Cabinet ministers.  Nobutaka Machimura, the foreign minister under Mr. Abe, will serve as chief Cabinet secretary.  Former defense⁸ minister Masahiko Komura was appointed as foreign minister.  

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 endorsement   

n.背书；赞成，认可，担保；签(注)，批注

参考例句：

• We are happy to give the product our full endorsement.我们很高兴给予该产品完全的认可。
• His presidential campaign won endorsement from several celebrities.他参加总统竞选得到一些社会名流的支持。

3 overrides   

越控( override的第三人称单数 )； （以权力）否决； 优先于； 比…更重要

参考例句：

• The new rule overrides all the previous ones. 新规则使以前的所有规则失效。
• The application configuration file setting overrides the machine configuration file setting. 应用程序配置文件设置重写计算机配置文件设置。

4 hawkish   

adj. 鹰派的, 强硬派的

参考例句：

• My staff's advice that first day was amazingly hawkish. 在第一天，我的僚属们的意见是令人吃惊的鹰派意见。
• Antiwar groups fear Barack Obama may create hawkish Cabinet. 反战团体担心巴拉克·奥巴马可以创建强硬派内阁。

5 abruptly   

adv.突然地，出其不意地

参考例句：

• He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
• I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。

6 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

7 eldest   

adj.最年长的，最年老的

参考例句：

• The King's eldest son is the heir to the throne.国王的长子是王位的继承人。
• The castle and the land are entailed on the eldest son.城堡和土地限定由长子继承。

8 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。