VOA标准英语2008年-Polls Suggest Close Race Between Obama, McCain
时间:2019-01-13 作者:英语课 分类:VOA标准英语2008年(六月)
By Jim Malone
Washington
20 June 2008
Recent public opinion polls in the U.S. presidential race give Democrat 1 Barack Obama a lead over Republican John McCain. But the lead is less than expected given some Democratic advantages this election year. VOA National correspondent Jim Malone has more from Washington.
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama listens during a meeting of Democratic Governors at the Chicago History Museum in Chicago, 20 June 2008
Recent surveys give Senator Obama a lead of between three and six percentage points over Senator McCain with the election a little more than four months away.
Democrats 2 are encouraged about their chances of winning back the White House this year after eight years of Republican control under President Bush.
But some Republicans are pleasantly surprised at the closeness of the race given the public's general unhappiness with the economy, the war in Iraq and Mr. Bush's tenure 3.
Quinnipiac University pollster Clay Richards says a large number of voters apparently 4 have already made up their minds about which candidate to support in November.
"Between 75 and 80 percent of voters said that their minds are made up," he noted 5. "So, the campaign, at this very early point, may come down to a battle for about 20 to 25 percent of the voters, with the rest having already committed."
A recent Quinnipiac poll in three crucial battleground states in November found that economic concerns were pushing more working class voters to support Obama. Those states were Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida, all expected to be competitive in November.
Obama had trouble winning working class support in his primary battles with former rival Hillary Clinton, but pollster Clay Richards says he appears to be making some inroads.
"Obama is doing better among them than other Democratic candidates have done in the past," he added. "And if he maintains this kind of lead, or this kind of balance among blue collar whites, he will probably carry these three states."
Republican presidential candidate John McCain addresses the Economic Club of Canada, in Ottawa, Canada, 20 June 2008
Republican John McCain finds himself in the difficult position of trying to succeed an unpopular president from his own party at a time when Americans are worried about the economy and rising fuel prices and believe the country is headed in the wrong direction.
McCain has staked his presidential hopes on the belief that Americans would prefer victory in the war in Iraq to a hasty withdrawal 6 of U.S. troops.
Quinnipiac pollster Peter Brown says Americans have concluded the Iraq war was not worth the cost, but he adds that they remain divided on what to do next.
"By a 2-1 margin, voters think the war was a mistake," he noted. "But when we asked them where do we want to go from here and give them two choices. One, the McCain position of no fixed 8 timetable for withdrawal and make the decision based on the security situation on the ground, and the Obama approach of a fixed timetable, they are basically split down the middle."
Senator McCain will emphasize his experience in the military and in Congress in the campaign, and will argue that Obama has too little experience in foreign policy and national security matters.
Brookings Institution political scholar Thomas Mann says Senator Obama has some work to do in that area.
"Some people have doubts about his qualifications as commander in chief," he explained. "So, he has a hurdle 9 to clear, a threshold to reach that he is trustworthy on matters pertaining 10 to national security."
Another factor that could keep the election close is Senator McCain's proven appeal to moderate and independent voters, who often tip the election in favor of one candidate over another.
Democrats argue that McCain's close support of President Bush's policy on Iraq would lead to what they call a third Bush term.
But analyst 11 John Fortier of the American Enterprise Institute contends McCain may be able to counter some of those expected Democratic attacks.
"McCain does have the ability to distance himself from Bush, though, more than other Republicans," he said. "He is not somebody with a newly found moderation. McCain goes a long way back where he has been something of a maverick 12 and opposing Bush, so I think he is going to be more able to resist that sort of criticism."
McCain also faces a lingering challenge in trying to shore up support among conservative Republicans. Some conservatives distrust McCain and have been unhappy in the past when he has disagreed with President Bush and been critical of the Republican Party.
- The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
- About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后,他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。
- 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》
- He remained popular throughout his tenure of the office of mayor.他在担任市长的整个任期内都深得民心。
- Land tenure is a leading political issue in many parts of the world.土地的保有权在世界很多地区是主要的政治问题。
- An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
- He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
- The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
- Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。
- The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
- They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。
- We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
- The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。
- Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
- Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
- The weather will be the biggest hurdle so I have to be ready.天气将会是最大的障碍,所以我必须要作好准备。
- She clocked 11.6 seconds for the 80 metre hurdle.八十米跳栏赛跑她跑了十一秒六。
- Living conditions are vastly different from those pertaining in their country of origin. 生活条件与他们祖国大不相同。
- The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school. 视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
- What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务?
- The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。