VOA标准英语2009年-Obama Expected to Give Sober, but Hopeful Addre

President Barack Obama addresses the U.S. Congress and the nation in a few hours, and faces huge expectations regarding the U.S. economic crisis. Democratic and Republican lawmakers made remarks ahead of the president's speech to a joint² session of Congress.
　
President Barack Obama takes questions to close Fiscal³ Responsibility Summit in the Old Executive Office Building at the White House, 23 Feb. 2009

President Obama is expected to urge Americans to pull together to confront challenges, saying that while the U.S. economy may be weakened and confidence shaken, the country will recover.

Although not a formal State of the Union Address, the first of which he will deliver next year, President Obama's speech will contain most of the elements of one - focusing on the issue of greatest concern to Americans - the economy.

He is expected to balance being honest with the American people and Congress about the challenges ahead, and trying to use the force of his personality, amid continuing high public approval of his performance, to reassure⁴ the nation.

House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi spoke⁵ with reporters a few hours before the president's arrival at the Capitol. "We think it will be a serious speech, but one full of hope and optimism," she said.

President Obama is expected to offer more details about additional steps planned to bring stability to financial markets, get banks to expand lending, and slow the loss of jobs across the country.

Lawmakers who, this month, approved a $787 billion stimulus⁶ measure to try to turn around the economy and hundreds of billions of dollars more last year to help failing financial institutions, say they hope the president's speech can deliver a burst of confidence.

Senate Majority Leader, Democrat¹ Harry⁷ Reid provided a hint of another aspect of the president's speech, a renewed call for Democrats⁸ and Republicans to work together. "Barack Obama is a person who reaches out to all. He will continue to do that tonight," he said.

But lawmakers are also apprehensive⁹, knowing that hundreds of billions of additional dollars could be needed as the Obama administration grapples with multiple issues, ranging from bank stability to a possible additional stimulus measure.

Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said that while everyone wants President Obama to succeed, he should not expect a debate-free environment on questions of federal spending. "We're not here to attack the president; we're here to talk about spending. And we think we are off on the wrong foot with the rate of spending that we are engaged in by running up the bills and sending them to our grandchildren," he said.

McConnell's remarks reflect the general tone of Republican criticism of what they call "irresponsible spending".

This week, House Republicans urged President Obama and majority Democrats to agree to freeze federal spending while efforts are underway to repair the economy.

In response, Democrats say the president has no option except to do everything he can to halt an economic slide that began under former President George Bush.

"The economic disaster that President Obama is facing and will talk about to the American people tonight [was] really waiting there on the desk when he got to the Oval Office," said Representative Jim McDermott, a Washington state Democrat.

On another issue of concern to lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle¹⁰, President Obama has vowed¹¹ to cut in half the $1.3-trillion U.S. government deficit¹² by the end of his first term.

But lawmakers see a difficult road ahead in trying to accomplish this while moving forward on other key objectives such as improving health care and education, encouraging alternative energy and addressing the problem of reforming government entitlement programs that threaten even more damage to the U.S. economy.

1 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。

2 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。

3 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

4 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。

5 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。

6 stimulus   

n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物

参考例句：

• Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
• Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。

7 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

8 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》

9 apprehensive   

adj.担心的，恐惧的，善于领会的

参考例句：

• She was deeply apprehensive about her future.她对未来感到非常担心。
• He was rather apprehensive of failure.他相当害怕失败。

10 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。

11 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。

12 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。