VOA标准英语2008年-US Presidential Candidates React to Wall Street

Both major U.S. presidential candidates and their running mates reacted Monday to the financial turmoil¹ on Wall Street in the wake of the bankruptcy² announcement from the investment bank Lehman Brothers. As VOA National correspondent Jim Malone reports from Washington, the problems in the U.S. financial sector³ have refocused attention on the economy as the biggest issue in the presidential campaign.
　
Sen. Barack Obama speaks during a rally in Grand Junction⁴, Colorado, 15 Sept 2008

Democratic candidate Barack Obama campaigned in Colorado and described the situation on Wall Street as the most serious financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Obama blamed the current crisis on eight years of Bush administration policies that he said have shredded⁵ consumer protections and weakened government oversight⁶.

"Now, instead of prosperity trickling⁷ down, the pain has trickled⁸ up from the struggles of hard working Americans on Main Street to the largest firms on Wall Street," he said. "This country cannot afford four more years of this failed philosophy."

Obama's Republican opponent, Senator John McCain, held campaign rallies in Florida.
　
Sen. John McCain speaks at a town hall meeting in Orlando, Floida 15 Sept. 2008

McCain promised that he would replace what he called the outdated⁹ patchwork¹⁰ quilt of financial regulatory oversight with a new system that is more transparent¹¹.

"People are frightened by these events," he said. "Our economy, I think, still, the fundamentals of our economy are strong. But these are very, very difficult times."

Democrats¹², however, seized on McCain's comment that the fundamentals of the economy remain strong, especially in light of public opinion polls that have shown economic issues are the top concerns for voters this year.

At a rally later in the day in Florida, McCain changed his comments.
　
A Wall Street street sign is seen near the New York Stock Exchange in New York, 15 Sept 2008

McCain said he believes the country is in an economic crisis and he vowed¹³ to clean up the greed and corruption¹⁴ on Wall Street.

"People tonight will be sitting around the kitchen table trying to figure out how they are going to stay in their homes, how they are going to keep their job, how they are going to put food on the table, and America is in a crisis today," he said.

Senator Obama said Senator McCain's initial positive comments on the economy show he is out of touch with the economic concerns of most Americans.

"Why else would he say that we have made great progress economically under George Bush. We just woke up to news of financial disaster, and this morning he said that the fundamentals of the economy are still strong," he said.

Obama's vice¹⁵ presidential running mate, Senator Joe Biden, also weighed in.

Biden told a crowd in Michigan that Senator McCain's economic plan would continue the approach of the past eight years under President Bush.

Meanwhile, McCain's vice presidential running mate, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, campaigned in Colorado and said she and McCain would fight to keep taxes low as the best way to grow the economy.

Palin has so far overshadowed Biden in the battle of vice presidential candidates. Biden brings years of foreign policy experience to the Democratic ticket, but Palin has excited social conservatives within the Republican Party and is demonstrating appeal to a broader cross-section of women voters as well.

 

1 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

2 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

3 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

4 junction   

n.连接，接合；交叉点，接合处，枢纽站

参考例句：

• There's a bridge at the junction of the two rivers.两河的汇合处有座桥。
• You must give way when you come to this junction.你到了这个路口必须让路。

5 shredded   

shred的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• Serve the fish on a bed of shredded lettuce. 先铺一层碎生菜叶，再把鱼放上，就可以上桌了。
• I think Mapo beancurd and shredded meat in chilli sauce are quite special. 我觉得麻婆豆腐和鱼香肉丝味道不错。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

7 trickling   

n.油画底色含油太多而成泡沫状突起v.滴( trickle的现在分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动

参考例句：

• Tears were trickling down her cheeks. 眼泪顺着她的面颊流了下来。
• The engine was trickling oil. 发动机在滴油。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 trickled   

v.滴( trickle的过去式和过去分词 )；淌；使)慢慢走；缓慢移动

参考例句：

• Blood trickled down his face. 血从他脸上一滴滴流下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The tears trickled down her cheeks. 热泪一滴滴从她脸颊上滚下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 outdated   

adj.旧式的，落伍的，过时的；v.使过时

参考例句：

• That list of addresses is outdated,many have changed.那个通讯录已经没用了，许多地址已经改了。
• Many of us conform to the outdated customs laid down by our forebears.我们许多人都遵循祖先立下的过时习俗。

10 patchwork   

n.混杂物；拼缝物

参考例句：

• That proposal is nothing else other than a patchwork.那个建议只是一个大杂烩而已。
• She patched new cloth to the old coat,so It'seemed mere patchwork. 她把新布初到那件旧上衣上，所以那件衣服看上去就象拼凑起来的东西。

11 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

12 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》

13 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

14 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

15 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。