VOA标准英语2015--美国会对联邦收集数据行为表示担忧

US Congress Mulls Future of Federal Bulk Data Collection 美国会对联邦收集数据行为表示担忧

WASHINGTON—

This week brings increased pressure on U.S. lawmakers to reform or reauthorize the National Security Agency’s ability to gather domestic telephone records for anti-terrorist purposes, because the program expires at the end of this month.

A federal appeals court ruled so-called “bulk metadata” collection illegal but did not order a stop to the program launched in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States.

Even before last week’s court decision, some in Congress were urging reform of domestic spying.

“I believe we have to protect our national security, but we also have to protect our civil liberties that make us unique as a country,” Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy said.

NSA leaks

Exposed by fugitive¹ former NSA contractor² Edward Snowden, the program caused a firestorm when Americans learned of vast telecommunications monitoring by a shadowy U.S. agency. 

Last year, President Barack Obama pledged what he called “a new approach.”

“The United States is not spying on ordinary people who do not threaten our national security, and we take their privacy concerns into account in our policies and procedures," Obama said then.

Moments after the court ruling last week, several Republicans rushed to defend the program, which reportedly collects and stores phone records but not the content of calls made.

“The NSA can find connections from known terrorists overseas and connect them to potential terrorists here in the United States.  Critics of the program either want to do away with it or make it much more difficult to use," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said.

Ending the program is unthinkable, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr said. “We are going to keep America safe. We are not going to revert³ back to where we are susceptible⁴ to another 9-11," he said.

Others see a threat to privacy.

“I say the phone records of law-abiding citizens are none of their damn business," Republican Senator Rand Paul. He also announced in early April he is running for the Republican presidential nomination⁵ in 2016.

Commitment to transparency

That the debate is unfolding at all shows America’s commitment to transparency, President Obama said.

“No one expects China to have an open debate about their surveillance programs, or Russia to take the privacy concerns of citizens into account. But let us remember: we are held to a different standard precisely⁶ because we have been at the forefront of defending personal privacy and human dignity," he said.

Many expect the Supreme⁷ Court will ultimately decide the constitutionality of bulk data collection.

In the meantime, Congress could extend the NSA program or reform it. Lawmakers of both parties say the stakes for national security, and civil liberties, are high.

1 fugitive   

adj.逃亡的，易逝的；n.逃犯，逃亡者

参考例句：

• The police were able to deduce where the fugitive was hiding.警方成功地推断出那逃亡者躲藏的地方。
• The fugitive is believed to be headed for the border.逃犯被认为在向国境线逃窜。

2 contractor   

n.订约人，承包人，收缩肌

参考例句：

• The Tokyo contractor was asked to kick $ 6000 back as commission.那个东京的承包商被要求退还6000美元作为佣金。
• The style of house the contractor builds depends partly on the lay of the land.承包商所建房屋的式样，有几分要看地势而定。

3 revert   

v.恢复，复归，回到

参考例句：

• Let us revert to the earlier part of the chapter.让我们回到本章的前面部分。
• Shall we revert to the matter we talked about yesterday?我们接着昨天谈过的问题谈，好吗？

4 susceptible   

adj.过敏的，敏感的；易动感情的，易受感动的

参考例句：

• Children are more susceptible than adults.孩子比成人易受感动。
• We are all susceptible to advertising.我们都易受广告的影响。

5 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。

6 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

7 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。