NPR 2009-12-14

Connecticut Senator Joseph Lieberman has reportedly told Senate Majority Leader Harry¹ Reid he will vote against the Democrats’ health care overhaul² legislation in its current form. His announcement could be a significant setback³ for the administration’s efforts to get the 60 votes it needs to counter an expected Republican filibuster⁴ of the measure. The New York Times reports backers of the bill thought they had Lieberman’s agreement to support a compromise aimed in part at addressing his concerns of that so called public option.

The president’s top economic advisers⁵ say they expect to see the economy begin creating new jobs by next spring. NPR’s Dina Temple-Raston reports.

Senior White House economists⁶ predicted that the US economy will resume creating jobs early next year. The head of the White House National Economic Council Lawrence Summers told the Sunday Talk Shows that he thought the unemployment rate would start to tip down by spring. His counterpart at the White House Council of Economic Advisors⁷ Christina Romer was slightly more optimistic. She said there could be job increases in the first quarter of 2010, though she was quick to add that there could be bumps in the road and the numbers could bounce around from month to month. Romer also said while the recession was over in official terms, Americans wouldn’t feel it was over until unemployment was back to normal. Normal unemployment in this country is about 5%. The jobless rate now is 10%. Dina Temple-Raston, NPR News.

The Senate has approved an omnibus spending bill that combines 6 appropriation⁸ bills to fund dozens of federal agencies through next fall when spending for mandatory⁹ programs such as social securities included the total price tags just over 1 trillion dollars. The vote was largely along party lines with Republicans such as Arizona Senator John McCain sharply criticizing the measure. “Do not be surprised when the American people, I love you, less than a year from now, next November, rise up and reject this kind of behavior and practice of irresponsible spending.” McCain called on President Obama to veto the bill.

Federal Agents in Texas have grounded a helicopter that they suspected was set for shipment to Iran. Bill Zeeble of member station KERA in Dallas reports.

The US-made Bell helicopter was owned by Mexico and leased to an Italian firm which intended to ship it to Iran for offshore¹⁰ oil work. A Dallas Morning News reports this civilian¹¹, not military use could still violate US regulations. That’s because the chopper might contain night vision and autopilot technology officials do not want to export to Iran. A US trade embargo¹² has been in practice against Iran for 14 years, but those restrictions¹³ don’t apply to foreign governments. Use of that possible loophole has been looked into. A pair of similar helicopters were reportedly already sent to Iran by the Italian company. This one came to the attention of federal authorities before it’s been packed up and shipped off. It’s been unlimbered for more than one year. For NPR News, I’m Bill Zeeble in Dallas.

This is NPR.

Two civilian workers with the UN-African Union peacekeeping force in Sudan’s Darfur Region have been released. They have been held captive since being abducted¹⁴ at gunpoint by militants¹⁵ back in August.

Italy’s Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi is spending the night in a hospital after being struck in the face with a statuette thrown by a man just a few feet away in Milan today. Berlusconi suffered a fractured nose, two broken teeth and injuries to his lips that require stitches.

Some models of Saab automobiles¹⁶ may be produced in China in the future if a deal reportedly struck between a Beijing company and Swedish automaker comes to fruition. Teri Schultz has details.

Though the deal is not yet the final, media reports indicate Beijing Automotive Industry Holding is in line to buy the right to produce older versions of the Saab93 and 95. The two large family cars are both highly rated for their safety features. Saab’s parent company General Motors has warned it might shut down the car manufacturer altogether if it doesn’t find a buyer for the whole unit by the end of this month. Several potential buyers have been mentioned including the American Renco and Dutch Spyker Cars. There are about 45,000 jobs at stake. The agreement with Beijing Automotive would not affect the separate sale of the entire Saab brand but would give GM a financial boost as it recovers from bankruptcy¹⁷. For NPR News, I’m Teri Schultz in Brussels.

Global consulting firm Accenture is ending its sponsorship agreement with golfer Tiger Woods. In a statement, the company said Woods is no longer the right representative for the firm after what it called the circumstances of the last two weeks. Accenture becomes the first sponsor of Woods to cut ties with him altogether after he admitted to marital¹⁸ infidelity and said he was going to take an indefinite leave of absence from professional golf to work on his marriage.
 

1 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。

2 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

3 setback   

n.退步，挫折，挫败

参考例句：

• Since that time there has never been any setback in his career.从那时起他在事业上一直没有遇到周折。
• She views every minor setback as a disaster.她把每个较小的挫折都看成重大灾难。

4 filibuster   

n.妨碍议事，阻挠；v.阻挠

参考例句：

• A senator dragged the subject in as a filibuster.一个参议员硬把这个题目拉扯进来，作为一种阻碍议事的手法。
• The democrats organized a filibuster in the senate.民主党党员在参议院上组织了阻挠议事。

5 advisers   

顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• a member of the President's favoured circle of advisers 总统宠爱的顾问班子中的一员
• She withdrew to confer with her advisers before announcing a decision. 她先去请教顾问然后再宣布决定。

6 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 advisors   

n.顾问，劝告者( advisor的名词复数 )；（指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• The governors felt that they were being strung along by their advisors. 地方长官感到他们一直在受顾问们的愚弄。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• We will consult together with advisors about her education. 我们将一起和专家商议她的教育事宜。 来自互联网

8 appropriation   

n.拨款，批准支出

参考例句：

• Our government made an appropriation for the project.我们的政府为那个工程拨出一笔款项。
• The council could note an annual appropriation for this service.议会可以为这项服务表决给他一笔常年经费。

9 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

10 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

11 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

12 embargo   

n.禁运（令）；vt.对...实行禁运，禁止（通商）

参考例句：

• This country put an oil embargo on an enemy country.该国对敌国实行石油禁运。
• During the war,they laid an embargo on commerce with enemy countries.在战争期间，他们禁止与敌国通商。

13 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

14 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

15 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

16 automobiles   

n.汽车( automobile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• When automobiles become popular,the use of the horse and buggy passed away. 汽车普及后，就不再使用马和马车了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Automobiles speed in an endless stream along the boulevard. 宽阔的林荫道上，汽车川流不息。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

17 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。

18 marital   

adj.婚姻的，夫妻的

参考例句：

• Her son had no marital problems.她的儿子没有婚姻问题。
• I regret getting involved with my daughter's marital problems;all its done is to bring trouble about my ears.我后悔干涉我女儿的婚姻问题, 现在我所做的一切将给我带来无穷的烦恼。