VOA常速英语2008年-Republican Presidential Frontrunner John McCain

By Carolyn Presutti
Washington, DC
11 February 2008
 

Now that the race for the Republican presidential nomination¹ has narrowed to two main candidates, Republican voters are questioning whether the frontrunner embraces enough of the party's conservative standards. Arizona Senator John McCain has angered conservatives in the past with his congressional votes. VOAs Carolyn Presutti takes a look at both sides.

Political experts say these people are the core of the American Republican Party: conservatives.

They embrace low taxes, traditional values, a strong military, untethered campaign spending and strong immigration laws. Every year, about 6,000 of them attend the Conservative Political Action Conference.

Enter Senator John McCain, the Republican frontrunner. Conservatives agree: he is Republican and that he is the frontrunner. But many say he is not a true conservative. Thus, the McCain conservative dilemma².

"He cannot go into the general election without conservatives not really caring whether he wins or loses," says political analyst³ Stuart Rothenberg.

McCain entered politics in 1981, during the Reagan years. Conservatives view President Ronald Reagan as their standard-bearer -- the ideal conservative politician.

"I am proud, very proud, to have come to public office as a foot soldier in the Reagan Revolution," McCain said to the conference. 

But some conservative radio talk show hosts, such as Laura Ingraham, question that claim. She says, "I do not think it is enough to say that you were a foot soldier in the Reagan revolution. I think the question is, 'What have you been doing for conservatism lately?"

Lately, Senator McCain has been trying to shed his reputation as a political maverick⁴, a politician who has been willing to break with conservative Republican orthodoxy on certain issues.

In 2002, Congress passed a bill co-sponsored by McCain that limited campaign spending. The law still angers conservatives who claim it empowers lobbyists to contribute millions to political campaigns.

Greg Walcher says his vote for president is tied to that belief. "Clearly that has not worked. It has made it easier for rich people to hide their money in campaigns through these other organizations. He ought to be able to say, this is what we tried to do. It did not work. It is time to fix it."

Ann Scott wants to hear McCain back-off from his position on a different issue. "I'm going to secure the border and then we are going to deal with the illegal immigrants who are here," she wants him to say.

But just the mention of immigration got this response from the conservatives. McCain started to make his point, "On the issue of illegal immigration, a position which...." [interrupted by boos]

Earlier this year McCain supported a bill that would eventually allow citizenship⁵ for many of the country's 12 million illegal immigrants. But before the convention of conservatives, he seemed to backtrack. He said, "I and other Republican supporters of the bill were genuine in our intention to restore control of our borders. We failed. I accept that. And I have pledged that it would be among my highest priorities to secure our borders first."

Younger voters seem to appreciate McCain's ability to reach out to the opposition⁶.

Voter Jake Wilson from Dayton, Ohio says, "At least John McCain is willing to work across the aisle⁷ and make compromise."

But that premise⁸ again infuriates conservative radio talk show hosts, like Rush Limbaugh. "When did the measure of conservatism become: reaching out to Democrats⁹?" Limbaugh asked.

"We do want, and I think deserve, a candidate who is proud to be a conservative and who embodies¹⁰ conservative ideals. Is that too much to ask?" asked Ingraham.

McCain said to the conference, "I am proud to be a conservative."

No one knows if McCain will change any minds. Then again, he has some time to do that. It is only February -- and there are nine more months until the general election.

1 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

2 dilemma   

n.困境，进退两难的局面

参考例句：

• I am on the horns of a dilemma about the matter.这件事使我进退两难。
• He was thrown into a dilemma.他陷入困境。

3 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

4 maverick   

adj.特立独行的；不遵守传统的；n.持异议者，自行其是者

参考例句：

• He's a maverick.He has his own way of thinking about things.他是个特异独行的人。对事情有自己的看法。
• You're a maverick and you'll try anything.你是个爱自行其是的人，样样事情都要尝试一下。

5 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

6 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。

7 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

8 premise   

n.前提；v.提论，预述

参考例句：

• Let me premise my argument with a bit of history.让我引述一些史实作为我立论的前提。
• We can deduce a conclusion from the premise.我们可以从这个前提推出结论。

9 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》

10 embodies   

v.表现( embody的第三人称单数 )；象征；包括；包含

参考例句：

• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This document embodies the concern of the government for the deformity. 这个文件体现了政府对残疾人的关怀。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》