CNN 2009-10-14

Good morning from the CNN center here in Atlanta, I'm Melissa Long. It's a Tuesday morning, the thirteenth of October. Here's a look at some of the stories happening NOW IN THE NEWS.

 On Capitol Hill, the Senate Finance Committee is on its way to a vote on health care reform. The plan expected to pass is considered by supporters as the best hope of five reform proposals in Congress right now. Next step, of course, senior Senate Democrats¹ will meet to try to merge² this proposal with a more liberal one from another committee.

 Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is sitting down with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on the agenda discussions on the next steps for Iran, missile defense³, and a new nuclear arms control treaty. Earlier, she met with Russia's Foreign Minister who said they('ve) made progress on the nuclear issue. Clinton talked about the importance of moving forward.

 "President Obama and I believe that it is this cooperative relationship and the acceptance of shared responsibility that is really at the core of the twenty first century relationship between the United States and Russia. One example of that is the work that our technical experts are doing on a START agreement to cut our nuclear arsenals⁴ to demonstrate leadership from the two largest nuclear powers in the world."

 The first criminal trial stemming from the financial crisis is now under way in Manhattan. Two former hedge fund managers with Bear Stearns are charged with security fraud, in connection with the collapse⁵ of the investment bank. Prosecutors⁶ say Ralph Cioffi and Matthew Tannin painted a rosy⁷ picture of two portfolios⁸ for their investors⁹, even though they believed the funds were in danger. Both have pleaded "Not guilty".

 Martin Luther King Junior's children will avoid a trial over control of the civil rights icon's estate. They reached a settlement very late last night. Martin Luther King, Jr. III and Bernice King sued Dexter King last July, accusing him of mishandling money from the family's estate, and(will) now a temporary custodian¹⁰ will be run in it and that person will be appointed.

Those are the headlines for you this hour, do stay with CNN; cnn.com for more on these stories or other news that develops today.

1 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》

2 merge   

v.(使)结合，(使)合并，(使)合为一体

参考例句：

• I can merge my two small businesses into a large one.我可以将我的两家小商店合并为一家大商行。
• The directors have decided to merge the two small firms together.董事们已决定把这两家小商号归并起来。

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 arsenals   

n.兵工厂，军火库( arsenal的名词复数 )；任何事物的集成

参考例句：

• We possess-each of us-nuclear arsenals capable of annihilating humanity. 我们两国都拥有能够毁灭全人类的核武库。 来自辞典例句
• Arsenals are factories that produce weapons. 军工厂是生产武器的工厂。 来自互联网

5 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

6 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

7 rosy   

adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的

参考例句：

• She got a new job and her life looks rosy.她找到一份新工作，生活看上去很美好。
• She always takes a rosy view of life.她总是对生活持乐观态度。

8 portfolios   

n.投资组合( portfolio的名词复数 )；（保险）业务量；（公司或机构提供的）系列产品；纸夹

参考例句：

• Price risk arises in non-trading portfolios, as well as in trading portfolios. 价格风险中出现的非贸易投资，以及在贸易投资组合。 来自互联网
• How do we fatten our portfolios and stay financially healthy? 我们怎样育肥我们的投资结构和维持财政健康呢？ 来自互联网

9 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

10 custodian   

n.保管人，监护人；公共建筑看守

参考例句：

• Benitez believes his custodian is among the top five in world football.贝尼特斯坚信他的门将是当今足坛最出色的五人之一。
• When his father died his uncle became his legal custodian.他父亲死后，他叔叔成了他的法定监护人。