(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
Today we tell about some important policy decisions during the first term of President George W. Bush. Republican George W. Bush defeated his Democratic Party opponent, Al Gore, in the presidential election of two thousand. The election results were extremely close. Mister Gore disputed them. Five suspense-filled weeks passed as several courts considered the voting issues. Finally, a decision by the United States Supreme Court effectively settled the election. George W. Bush was to be president. Mister Bush gave his inaugural speech in January two thousand one to a politically divided nation. He called on Americans to care for and respect others. PRESIDENT BUSH: "Today we affirm a new commitment to live out our nation's promise through civility, courage, compassion and character. America, at its best, matches a commitment to principle with a concern for civility. A civil society demands from each of us good will and respect, fair dealing and forgiveness."During his election campaign, Mister Bush had promised he would help social aid organizations linked to religious groups. He established the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives soon after his inauguration. Its goal was to help social agencies fight problems like homelessness and illegal drug use.Critics argued that this would violate the separation of church and state required by the United States Constitution. But Mister Bush said the agencies would provide shelter and food and not religious holy books. ,President Bush took several actions on the environment during his first term. In March two thousand one, he withdrew the United States from the Kyoto Protocol. Many nations had signed the treaty in nineteen ninety-seven in Kyoto, Japan. This treaty developed from earlier international efforts to control climate change. The Kyoto Protocol restricted the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that nations could release into the atmosphere. The limitation was placed to reduce global warming, the increase in the average temperature of Earth's surface. More than one hundred nations have approved the treaty. But Mister Bush said the agreement was unfair. He noted that China and India were not required to limit release of greenhouse gases. The president believed the Kyoto Protocol requirements would harm American industry and the economy.
Critics said Mister Bush's decision meant more damage to the environment. They also said it set a bad example for the world. Another environmental issue concerned exploring for oil and gas. The president supported a measure for drilling in a protected wildlife area in the state of Alaska. He said getting the resources from the state would reduce American dependence on foreign oil. Opponents disagreed. They said the measure would destroy wildlife in some of America's most beautiful natural surroundings. Congress did not approve the measure. One of Mister Bush's major goals was improving America's public schools. In January two thousand two, he signed a law called the No Child Left Behind Act. PRESIDENT BUSH: "And we owe the children of America a good education. And today begins a new era, a new time in public education in our country. As of this hour, America's schools will be on a new path of reform, and a new path of results."The law increased the role of the federal government in guaranteeing quality public education for all children in the United States. It had several goals: To help poor and minority students improve their performance.
To provide choices for parents with students in low-performing schools. And to increase money for schools in low-income areas. The law required all students in grades three through eight to be tested every year in reading and mathematics. It held schools responsible for the progress of their students. Some educators praised No Child Left Behind. But many educators criticized the law. They said teachers had to spend too much time preparing students for the tests. They also said the law permitted students to leave failing schools instead of finding ways to improve those schools. Critics also said not enough federal money was provided for the program. Another major piece of legislation dealt with health care for senior citizens. President Bush wanted to extend Medicare, the nation's health care plan for people sixty-five and older. In two thousand three he signed a law to help forty million older Americans buy medicines ordered by their doctors. The program was expected to cost four hundred billion dollars. It provided billions of dollars to private health insurance companies.
Supporters of the law said it would lead to better private insurance coverage for senior citizens. Opponents said it would help health insurance and drug companies the most and might lead to the end of the Medicare system. American law lets presidents decide some issues without Congressional action. Mister Bush announced such an executive decision about scientific research. He decided to permit federal financing for research that uses existing groups of cells created from human embryos. It was the first time federal money would be used for such stem cell research. Stem cells can grow into many different kinds of cells. For example, they can become cells of the heart, nerves or brain. Scientists say such cells might in the future be used to treat diseases like Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and juvenile diabetes. Mister Bush limited use of the cells, however. He said taxpayers' money could finance the research only if the embryos had already been destroyed. The president said more than sixty groups of these cells were available for research. However, some scientists said these stem cells were in poor condition and could not be used for research.One of Mister Bush's major goals was reducing taxes for Americans. In two thousand one, he signed a bill calling for more than one trillion dollars in tax reductions. These cuts were to become effective over time. The president said the economy would improve if people had more money to spend. Democrats said big reductions would harm the economy instead of helping it. In two thousand three, Congress passed compromise tax measures. They called for three hundred fifty billion dollars in tax reductions. That was less than half of what the president had proposed. Most reductions went to investors in the stock market, individual taxpayers, couples and businesses. The rest was to help the states. In two thousand two, President Bush signed a law that increased punishments for dishonesty in business. The new law also established an independent group to oversee the accounting industry. That is the industry that investigates the financial records of companies. The action came after several major businesses failed. For example, the Enron Corporation, once the leading American energy company, failed in two thousand one.
It was one of the largest corporate bankruptcy claims in American history. Some Enron investors lost all their money in the failure. Retired employees lost monthly payments they needed to live on. Some top officials in the company had used dishonest accounting methods to hide financial problems from investors. A federal grand jury in Houston, Texas, brought charges against former Enron chairman and chief executive officer Kenneth Lay and other officers. The collapse of Enron was followed by a series of other corporate failures involving dishonest accounting methods. For example, the international communications company WorldCom Incorporated also went bankrupt. The government charged several company officials with wrongdoing. November second, two thousand four was Election Day. The public would vote on whether to support President Bush for another term in office. Four years earlier, George W. Bush had been elected in one of the closest elections in history. Now he would have another chance to test his popularity with the American people.重点解析
1.senior citizen 老年人
Asphyxia and a shock senior citizen when park morning calisthenics, faints in the place, consciousness to lose suddenly.
昏厥和休克型一位老年人在公园晨练时,突然昏倒在地,意识丧失 。
2.called for 呼吁
I called for the draft agreement you sent us one week ago.
我打电话是关于你一周前寄来的那份协议草案 。
3.Election Day 选举日
On a cold and rainy Election Day we head out together to vote.
在一个阴冷又下着雨的选举日,我们一起外出投票 。
4.instead of 代替;而不是…
So then we have integrals instead of sums.
那么我们用积分代替求和 。
5.commitment to恪守承诺
But what about the commitment to taxpayers?
但是对纳税人的承诺哪?
参考译文
今天我们为您讲述乔治·w·布什总统在第一届任期内做出的一些重要政策 。2000年的总统选举中,共和党人乔治·w·布什击败了民主党对手阿尔·戈尔 。选举结果不相上下,戈尔和布什竞选总统存有争议 。五个星期过去了,几家法院开始考虑投票问题 。最后,美国最高法院有效地解决了选举问题,乔治·w·布什即将成为美国总统 。2001年1月,布什向政治分裂的国家发表了就职演说 。他呼吁美国人关心和尊重他人 。“今天,我们在这里重申一个新的信念,即通过发扬谦恭、勇气、同情心和个性的精神来实现我们国家的理想 。美国在它最鼎盛时也没忘记遵循谦逊有礼的原则 。文明的社会需要我们每个人品质优良,尊重他人,为人公平和宽宏大量 。”|在竞选活动中,布什承诺将帮助与宗教团体有关的社会援助组织 。就职后不久,布什就建立了白宫宗教和社区倡议办公室 。其目标是帮助社会机构解决无家可归和非法毒品使用等问题 。批评人士认为,这违反了美国宪法所要求的政教分离 。但是布什表示这些机构将提供住所和食物,而非宗教圣书 。布什总统在其第一个任期内就环境问题采取了几项行动 。2001年3月,他宣布美国将从《京都议定书》中撤出 。1997年,多国在日本东京签署了该条约 。该条约是在早期国际上控制气候变化问题的基础上制定的 。《京都议定书》限制了各国向大气中排放的二氧化碳和其它温室气体的数量 。限制排放温室气体是为了减缓全球变暖,即地球表面平均温度上升
增加低收入地区学校的资金 。一百多个国家批准了该条约 。但是布什表示这个条约是不公平的,他指出,中国和印度不需要限制温室气体的排放 。布什认为,按照《京都议定书》的要求,美国工业和经济将会受损 。批评人士表示,布什的决定意味着对环境造成更多的破坏 。他们还说,美国给世界树立了一个坏榜样 。另一个环境问题与油气勘探有关 。布什总统支持一项在阿拉斯加野生动物保护区钻探的措施 。他说,从国家内部获得资源将减少美国对外国石油的依赖 。有人反对该措施,他们表示,这将破坏美国最美丽的自然环境中的野生动物 。国会没有批准该议案 。布什的主要目标之一是改善美国的公立学校 。2002年1月,布什签署了一项名为“不让任何孩子落后”的法案 。“我们欠美国孩子们一个良好的教育 。今天,我们国家开启了新时代——公共教育的新时代 。从现在开始,美国的学校将走上新的改革之路,新的成果之路 。”这项法律提高了联邦政府在保证美国所有儿童接受优质公共教育方面的作用 。目标包括:帮助贫困和少数民族学生提高学习成绩 。为就读于薄弱学校学生的家长提供选择 。 。法律要求所有三年级到八年级的学生每年都要参加阅读和数学考试 。还要求学校为学生的进步负责 。一些教育家称赞“不让任何孩子落后”的法案,但许多教育家批评该法案 。他们表示,老师们不得不花太多的时间为学生准备考试 。他们还说,法律允许学生离开失败学校,而不是想方设法改善这些学校的教育质量 。批评人士还表示,该项目没有足够的联邦资金 。另一项主要立法涉及老年人的医疗保健问题 。布什总统希望扩大医疗保险,延长美国65岁及以上老人的医疗保险计划 。2003年,他签署了一项法律,帮助4000万美国老年人购买医生指定的药品 。该项目预计耗资4000亿美元,为私人健康保险公司提供数十亿美元 。该法案的支持者表示,这将为老年人提供更好的私人保险 。反对者表示,这将最大程度地帮助医疗保险和制药公司,并可能导致医疗保险制度的终结 。美国法律允许总统自行决定一些问题,而不需要国会决议 。布什宣布了关于科研的行政决定 。他允许将联邦资金用于现有人类胚胎细胞群的研究 。这是首次联邦资金用于此类干细胞研究 。干细胞可以长成许多不同种类的细胞 。例如,它们可以成为心脏、神经或大脑的细胞 。科学家表示,这种细胞将来可能用于治疗帕金森氏症、阿尔茨海默氏症和青少年糖尿病等疾病 。然而布什限制细胞使用 。他说,只有在胚胎已经被销毁的情况下,纳税人的钱才能资助这项研究
。总统表示,有60多组细胞可供研究 。然而,一些科学家表示,这些干细胞状况不佳,无法用于研究 。布什的主要目标之一是减免美国人的税收 。2001年,他签署了一项法案,要求减税超过一万亿美元 。随着时间的推移,这些减税措施将会奏效 。总统表示,如果人们有更多的钱可以消费,经济就会改善 。民主党表示,大幅削减支出将会损害而非促进经济的发展 。2003年,国会通过了折衷的税收措施,要求减税的资金为3500亿美元,这还不到总统提议资金的一半 。减税对象包括,股票市场的投资者、个人纳税人、夫妻和企业,剩余资金用于帮助各州 。2002年,布什总统签署了一项法律,增加了对商业欺诈行为的惩罚 。新法律还成立了一个独立的组织来监督会计行业 。该行业旨在调查公司财务记录 。这一行动措施是在几家主要企业倒闭后采取的 。例如,安然公司,曾经是美国领先的能源公司,于2001年破产 。这是美国史上最大的企业破产案例之一 。安然公司的一些投资者血本无归 。退休员工失去了他们赖以生存的月供
其目标是帮助社会机构解决无家可归和非法毒品使用等问题 。该公司的一些高级官员曾使用不诚信的会计方法向投资者隐瞒公司财务问题 。德克萨斯州休斯顿的一个联邦大陪审团对安然前董事长兼首席执行官肯尼斯·雷和其他人员提出指控 。安然公司倒闭之后,又发生了一系列公司因为不诚信会计方法倒闭的事件 。例如,美国世界通信公司也破产了 。政府指控几名公司人员存有不正当行为 。2004年11月2日是选举日 。公众将投票决定是否支持布什总统连任 。四年前,乔治·w·布什在历史上选票最接近的一次选举中胜出 。如今,布什将有机会测试他在美国人民中的受欢迎程度 。今天我们为您讲述乔治·w·布什总统在第一届任期内做出的一些重要政策 。2000年的总统选举中,共和党人乔治·w·布什击败了民主党对手阿尔·戈尔 。选举结果不相上下,戈尔和布什竞选总统存有争议五个星期过去了,几家法院开始考虑投票问题 。最后,美国最高法院有效地解决了选举问题,乔治·w·布什即将成为美国总统 。2001年1月,布什向政治分裂的国家发表了就职演说 。他呼吁美国人关心和尊重他人 。“今天,我们在这里重申一个新的信念,即通过发扬谦恭、勇气、同情心和个性的精神来实现我们国家的理想 。美国在它最鼎盛时也没忘记遵循谦逊有礼的原则 。文明的社会需要我们每个人品质优良,尊重他人,为人公平和宽宏大量 。”|在竞选活动中,布什承诺将帮助与宗教团体有关的社会援助组织 。就职后不久,布什就建立了白宫宗教和社区倡议办公室 。 。批评人士认为,这违反了美国宪法所要求的政教分离 。但是布什表示这些机构将提供住所和食物,而非宗教圣书 。布什总统在其第一个任期内就环境问题采取了几项行动 。2001年3月,他宣布美国将从《京都议定书》中撤出 。1997年,多国在日本东京签署了该条约 。该条约是在早期国际上控制气候变化问题的基础上制定的 。《京都议定书》限制了各国向大气中排放的二氧化碳和其它温室气体的数量 。限制排放温室气体是为了减缓全球变暖,即地球表面平均温度上升 。一百多个国家批准了该条约 。但是布什表示这个条约是不公平的,他指出,中国和印度不需要限制温室气体的排放 。布什认为,按照《京都议定书》的要求,美国工业和经济将会受损 。批评人士表示,布什的决定意味着对环境造成更多的破坏 。他们还说,美国给世界树立了一个坏榜样 。另一个环境问题与油气勘探有关 。布什总统支持一项在阿拉斯加野生动物保护区钻探的措施 。他说,从国家内部获得资源将减少美国对外国石油的依赖 。有人反对该措施,他们表示,这将破坏美国最美丽的自然环境中的野生动物 。国会没有批准该议案 。布什的主要目标之一是改善美国的公立学校 。2002年1月,布什签署了一项名为“不让任何孩子落后”的法案 。“我们欠美国孩子们一个良好的教育 。今天,我们国家开启了新时代——公共教育的新时代 。从现在开始,美国的学校将走上新的改革之路,新的成果之路 。”这项法律提高了联邦政府在保证美国所有儿童接受优质公共教育方面的作用 。目标包括:帮助贫困和少数民族学生提高学习成绩
他说,只有在胚胎已经被销毁的情况下,纳税人的钱才能资助这项研究 。为就读于薄弱学校学生的家长提供选择 。增加低收入地区学校的资金 。法律要求所有三年级到八年级的学生每年都要参加阅读和数学考试 。还要求学校为学生的进步负责 。一些教育家称赞“不让任何孩子落后”的法案,但许多教育家批评该法案 。他们表示,老师们不得不花太多的时间为学生准备考试 。他们还说,法律允许学生离开失败学校,而不是想方设法改善这些学校的教育质量 。批评人士还表示,该项目没有足够的联邦资金 。另一项主要立法涉及老年人的医疗保健问题 。布什总统希望扩大医疗保险,延长美国65岁及以上老人的医疗保险计划 。2003年,他签署了一项法律,帮助4000万美国老年人购买医生指定的药品 。该项目预计耗资4000亿美元,为私人健康保险公司提供数十亿美元 。该法案的支持者表示,这将为老年人提供更好的私人保险 。反对者表示,这将最大程度地帮助医疗保险和制药公司,并可能导致医疗保险制度的终结 。美国法律允许总统自行决定一些问题,而不需要国会决议 。布什宣布了关于科研的行政决定 。他允许将联邦资金用于现有人类胚胎细胞群的研究 。这是首次联邦资金用于此类干细胞研究 。干细胞可以长成许多不同种类的细胞 。例如,它们可以成为心脏、神经或大脑的细胞 。科学家表示,这种细胞将来可能用于治疗帕金森氏症、阿尔茨海默氏症和青少年糖尿病等疾病 。然而布什限制细胞使用 。 。总统表示,有60多组细胞可供研究 。然而,一些科学家表示,这些干细胞状况不佳,无法用于研究 。布什的主要目标之一是减免美国人的税收 。2001年,他签署了一项法案,要求减税超过一万亿美元 。随着时间的推移,这些减税措施将会奏效 。总统表示,如果人们有更多的钱可以消费,经济就会改善 。民主党表示,大幅削减支出将会损害而非促进经济的发展 。2003年,国会通过了折衷的税收措施,要求减税的资金为3500亿美元,这还不到总统提议资金的一半 。减税对象包括,股票市场的投资者、个人纳税人、夫妻和企业,剩余资金用于帮助各州 。2002年,布什总统签署了一项法律,增加了对商业欺诈行为的惩罚 。新法律还成立了一个独立的组织来监督会计行业 。该行业旨在调查公司财务记录 。这一行动措施是在几家主要企业倒闭后采取的 。例如,安然公司,曾经是美国领先的能源公司,于2001年破产 。这是美国史上最大的企业破产案例之一 。安然公司的一些投资者血本无归 。退休员工失去了他们赖以生存的月供 。该公司的一些高级官员曾使用不诚信的会计方法向投资者隐瞒公司财务问题 。德克萨斯州休斯顿的一个联邦大陪审团对安然前董事长兼首席执行官肯尼斯·雷和其他人员提出指控 。安然公司倒闭之后,又发生了一系列公司因为不诚信会计方法倒闭的事件 。例如,美国世界通信公司也破产了 。政府指控几名公司人员存有不正当行为 。2004年11月2日是选举日 。公众将投票决定是否支持布什总统连任 。四年前,乔治·w·布什在历史上选票最接近的一次选举中胜出 。如今,布什将有机会测试他在美国人民中的受欢迎程度 。译文为可可英语翻译,未经授权请勿转载!