VOA标准英语 Obama Prepares for Mexico Trip

President Barack Obama heads to Mexico City on Thursday to meet with President Felipe Calderon, before traveling to Trinidad and Tobago for the fifth Summit of the Americas. Both nations are suffering economically, Mexico's border states are engulfed¹ by drug violence, and U.S. immigration reform initiatives have stalled.
　
President Barack Obama at the White House

America's porous² border with Mexico stretches more than 3,000 kilometers and drug-fueled violence along that border is a growing problem. Drug-related killings³ in Mexico's northernmost states doubled last year to about 6,000, amid bloody⁴ battles between cartels and security forces.

Mexico could become failed state

The lawlessness and carnage has led some Mexico-watchers to suggest the country is at risk of becoming a failed state. President Calderon acknowledges Mexico has a problem, one that will be a focal point of his meeting Thursday with President Obama in Mexico City.

"We have a problem of violence and organized crime that we have to tackle," Mr. Calderon said. "Both countries have to do this. Violence and crime are problems not only of Mexico, as President Obama has acknowledged. These are common problems we have to face together."

For his part, President Obama has noted⁵ America's appetite for illegal narcotics⁶ fuels the drug trade, and weapons from the United States are finding their way into traffickers' hands.

"We have got to reduce the demand for drugs," the president said. "We have got to do our part in reducing the flow of cash and guns south [to Mexico]."

On that point, Mexican officials heartily⁷ concur⁸, saying they cannot eradicate⁹ the drug trade unless the United States cuts off traffickers' access to money and weapons.

Top US officials dispatched to Mexico
　
US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton (File photo)

The Obama administration has boosted the number of federal agents along the U.S. border with Mexico. And, in advance of his meeting with President Calderon, Mr. Obama dispatched Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and other top officials to Mexico to formulate¹⁰ a coordinated¹¹ response to the trafficking threat.

But some observers want cooperation to go further. Erika de la Garza directs the Latin American Initiative at Houston's Rice University. She offers this suggestion.

"To create a bi-national border authority where they would craft policies together," she said. "Making it more systematic¹² and institutionalizing it would have greater benefits."

Immigration also a major concern

Immigration concerns will also likely surface in talks between Presidents Obama and Calderon. More than half the 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States are Mexican. During last year's presidential campaign, Mr. Obama pledged to pursue comprehensive immigration reform, but has not addressed the subject in detail since taking office.

A major complication in tackling the immigration issue is the global economic downturn, according to Ricardo Blazquez, director of the Center for Inter-American Border Studies at the University of Texas. Blazquez says, at a time when millions of Americans are out of work, any proposal perceived as aiding undocumented laborers¹⁴ stands almost no chance of passage.

"Immigration is a significant issue and will remain a significant issue," he noted. "I think the limiting factor would be the current state of economic affairs that really would not promote an open political resolution to the issue."

What about trade agreements?

The deep recession will also affect the two leaders' discussion of trade issues and commercial concerns. As a candidate, Mr. Obama said he favored renegotiating parts of the North American Free Trade Agreement, and criticized other trade pacts¹⁵ as lacking environmental and labor¹³ provisions.

But as president, Mr. Obama has repeatedly spoken out against protectionism, and shown no appetite to cancel existing trade accords.

On a separate issue, Mexico has protested America's revocation¹⁶ of a pilot program that allowed Mexican commercial trucks to enter the United States, imposing¹⁷ retaliatory¹⁸ tariffs¹⁹ on some U.S. exports. White House officials are offering no guarantees that Presidents Obama and Calderon will be able to resolve the dispute during Thursday's meeting.

Will Obama get enthusiastic welcome?

Visiting U.S. presidents do not always get the warmest of welcomes from all sectors²⁰ of Mexican society. President George W. Bush's 2007 visit to Mexico sparked loud protests in several large cities, but President Obama is expected to be greeted enthusiastically, or at least politely, by most Mexicans.

Ricardo Blazquez says Mr. Obama should seize the opportunity his relative popularity on the world stage affords.

"The benefits of a productive relationship between Mexico and the U.S. are infinite," he said. "I think the option of a failed relationship can no longer exist and cannot be on the table. I think both leaders recognize this."

From Mexico, Mr. Obama heads to Port of Spain in Trinidad for the Summit of the Americas.

1 engulfed   

v.吞没，包住( engulf的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was engulfed by a crowd of reporters. 他被一群记者团团围住。
• The little boat was engulfed by the waves. 小船被波浪吞没了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 porous   

adj.可渗透的，多孔的

参考例句：

• He added sand to the soil to make it more porous.他往土里掺沙子以提高渗水性能。
• The shell has to be slightly porous to enable oxygen to pass in.外壳不得不有些细小的孔以便能使氧气通过。

3 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

4 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 narcotics   

n.麻醉药( narcotic的名词复数 )；毒品；毒

参考例句：

• The use of narcotics by teenagers is a problem in many countries. 青少年服用麻醉药在许多国家中都是一个问题。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Police shook down the club, looking for narcotics. 警方彻底搜查了这个俱乐部，寻找麻醉品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 heartily   

adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很

参考例句：

• He ate heartily and went out to look for his horse.他痛快地吃了一顿，就出去找他的马。
• The host seized my hand and shook it heartily.主人抓住我的手，热情地和我握手。

8 concur   

v.同意，意见一致，互助，同时发生

参考例句：

• Wealth and happiness do not always concur.财富与幸福并非总是并存的。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done.我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。

9 eradicate   

v.根除，消灭，杜绝

参考例句：

• These insects are very difficult to eradicate.这些昆虫很难根除。
• They are already battling to eradicate illnesses such as malaria and tetanus.他们已经在努力消灭疟疾、破伤风等疾病。

10 formulate   

v.用公式表示；规划；设计；系统地阐述

参考例句：

• He took care to formulate his reply very clearly.他字斟句酌，清楚地做了回答。
• I was impressed by the way he could formulate his ideas.他陈述观点的方式让我印象深刻。

11 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

12 systematic   

adj.有系统的，有计划的，有方法的

参考例句：

• The way he works isn't very systematic.他的工作不是很有条理。
• The teacher made a systematic work of teaching.这个教师进行系统的教学工作。

13 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

14 laborers   

n.体力劳动者，工人( laborer的名词复数 )；（熟练工人的）辅助工

参考例句：

• Laborers were trained to handle 50-ton compactors and giant cranes. 工人们接受操作五十吨压土机和巨型起重机的训练。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Wage-labour rests exclusively on competition between the laborers. 雇佣劳动完全是建立在工人的自相竞争之上的。 来自英汉非文学 - 共产党宣言

15 pacts   

条约( pact的名词复数 )； 协定； 公约

参考例句：

• Vassals can no longer accept one-sided defensive pacts (!). 附庸国不会接受单方面的共同防御协定。
• Well, they are EU members now and have formed solidarity pacts with members such as Poland. 他们现在已经是欧盟的一部分了并且他们和欧盟成员诸如波兰等以签署了合作协议。

16 revocation   

n.废止，撤回

参考例句：

• the revocation of planning permission 建筑许可的撤销
• The revocation of the Edict of Nantes was signed here in 1685. 1685年南特敕令的废除是在这里宣布的。 来自互联网

17 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。

18 retaliatory   

adj.报复的

参考例句：

• The process can take years before the WTO approves retaliatory action. 在WTO通过此行动之前，这个程序恐怕要等上一阵子了。 来自互联网
• Retaliatory tariffs on China are tantamount to taxing ourselves as a punishment. 将惩罚性关税强加于中国相当于对我们自己实施课税惩罚。 来自互联网

19 tariffs   

关税制度； 关税( tariff的名词复数 )； 关税表； （旅馆或饭店等的）收费表； 量刑标准

参考例句：

• British industry was sheltered from foreign competition by protective tariffs. 保护性关税使英国工业免受国际竞争影响。
• The new tariffs have put a stranglehold on trade. 新的关税制对开展贸易极为不利。

20 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》