CNN 2009-05-05

Hi, there. Thanks for joining us. I'm Virginia Cha at the CNN Center in Atlanta with a look at what's happening NOW IN THE NEWS.

In South Florida, swine flu concerns have closed at least five more schools, the latest focus, Miami-Dade County and Hillsborough County in the Tampa area. Health officials say there are three confirmed cases and 15 probable cases of H1N1 virus. Cleaning is underway you might expect these schools probably won't reopen before Wednesday at the earliest.

President Obama unveiling a plan this hour to change the tax code. The reforms are aimed at closing loopholes for overseas tax havens¹ and ending business tax incentives² for creating jobs overseas. The administration says the changes could raise at least 210 billion dollars over the next ten years.

Italian carmaker Fiat³ is on track to buy most of General Motors' European operations. It is in talks to GM right now. Fiat has already tried to snap up Chrysler. A US bankruptcy⁴ court must approve that deal. This buy-up of cheap auto⁵ assets may help Fiat become a global automotive powerhouse. GM has been trying to find investors⁶ as part of its restructuring plan.

Two-time Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards is being investigated for how he spent campaign funds. At issue, more than 100,000 dollars paid to the video production company of the woman with whom he admitted having an affair. Edwards says in a statement that no campaign funds were used improperly⁷.

Malawi's highest court is deliberating on Madonna's bid to adopt a three-year-old girl. The singer wasn't at the hearing today. A lower court said she cannot adopt the little girl because she wasn't screened properly. It says rules were bent⁸ when Madonna adopted her son David from Malawi last year. Madonna's lawyer says those rules are outdated⁹.

Those are the headlines for you this hour. Stay with CNN for more on those stories and all your other news of the day.

1 havens   

n.港口，安全地方( haven的名词复数 )v.港口，安全地方( haven的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Your twenty havens would back out at the last minute anyhow. 你那二十个避难所到了最后一分钟也要不认帐。 来自辞典例句
• Using offshore havens to avoid taxes and investor protections. 使用海面的港口避免税和投资者保护。 来自互联网

2 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

3 fiat   

n.命令，法令，批准；vt.批准，颁布

参考例句：

• The opening of a market stall is governed by municipal fiat.开设市场摊位受市政法令管制。
• He has tried to impose solutions to the country's problems by fiat.他试图下令强行解决该国的问题。

4 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。

5 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

6 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

7 improperly   

不正确地，不适当地

参考例句：

• Of course it was acting improperly. 这样做就是不对嘛！
• He is trying to improperly influence a witness. 他在试图误导证人。

8 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

9 outdated   

adj.旧式的，落伍的，过时的；v.使过时

参考例句：

• That list of addresses is outdated,many have changed.那个通讯录已经没用了，许多地址已经改了。
• Many of us conform to the outdated customs laid down by our forebears.我们许多人都遵循祖先立下的过时习俗。