文本选自：The Economist（经济学人）
作者：Unknown
原文标题：How Mexico has become the “enemy” of America’s Republicans
原文发布时间：25 Jul. 2023
How Mexico has become the "enemy" of America's Republicans
More than once, as president, Donald Trump mused about firing missiles at the drug labs of Mexican cartels. "No one would know it was us," he declared, before being talked out of the idea. Mark Esper, the then defence secretary, recounted the incident in his memoirs published last year, astonished that bombing a neighbour could be seriously thought of. Now the extraordinary is becoming more commonplace as Republicans argue that greater use of military force, or the threat of it, can help control America's southern border and curb the smuggling of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is produced illegally in Mexico.
One congressman, Michael McCaul of Texas, has introduced a bill to classify fentanyl as a "chemical weapon". Lindsey Graham, a senator from South Carolina, is pushing one to designate Mexican cartels as "foreign terrorist organisations". Dan Crenshaw and Mike Waltz, congressmen from Texas and Florida respectively, have proposed another that would authorise "all necessary and appropriate force" against foreign states, organisations or people linked to trafficking fentanyl.
Republican presidential candidates, too, are talking tough. Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, has suggested a naval blockade of Mexico-bound shipping to halt the import of fentanyl precursor chemicals from China. Nikki Haley, a former ambassador to the UN, has proposed sending in special forces with a warning to Mexico: "Either you do it or we do it." Tim Scott, the other senator from South Carolina, declared in May, "I will allow the world's greatest military to fight these terrorists."
墨西哥是如何成为美国共和党的“敌人”的
精听党背景导读
墨西哥是全球范围内受到毒品危害最为严重的国家，它和美国南部的四个州接壤，边境线漫长，从墨西哥通往美国的诸多公路都是运输、贩卖毒品的犯罪之路。墨西哥的毒品生意为何屡禁不止，和美国有着密不可分的关系，因为美国是全球最大的毒品消费市场，全球每年有60%左右的毒品都销往美国，墨西哥的毒枭们仰仗着这个巨大的市场大发横财，一个毒枭倒下了，千千万万的毒枭站起来，这就是人为财死。
文本选自：The Economist（经济学人）作者：Unknown原文标题：How Mexico has become the “enemy” of America’s Republicans原文发布时间：25 Jul. 2023关键词：墨西哥 毒品 边境
精听党带着问题听
1.“咄咄逼人”用英语可以怎么表达？2. 如何理解段一中的“muse about”？3. 芬太尼前体化学品一般是从哪进口的？
精听党选段赏析
标题解读
How Mexico has become the “enemy” of America’s Republicans
墨西哥是如何成为美国共和党的“敌人”的
enemy
n. 敌人，反对者；
段一
More than once, as president, Donald Trump mused about firing missiles at the drug labs of Mexican cartels. “No one would know it was us,” he declared, before being talked out of the idea. Mark Esper, the then defence secretary, recounted the incident in his memoirs published last year, astonished that bombing a neighbour could be seriously thought of. Now the extraordinary is becoming more commonplace as Republicans argue that greater use of military force, or the threat of it, can help control America’s southern border and curb the smuggling of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is produced illegally in Mexico.
muse about 思考，沉思；1. She often mused about the meaning of life. 她经常思考生命的意义。
missile n. 导弹；1. The military launched missiles in response to the enemy's attack. 军队对敌人的袭击进行了导弹反击。
Mexican cartels 墨西哥贩毒集团；1. The Mexican cartels control the illegal drug trade in the region. 墨西哥贩毒集团控制着该地区的非法毒品交易。
declare vt. 宣布，声明；1. The president will declare a national emergency. 总统将宣布全国紧急状态。
talk out of 说服不做，劝阻；1. She talked him out of quitting his job. 她说服他不要辞去工作。
defence secretary 国防部长；
recount vt. 复述，重新讲述；叙述，说明；1. He recounted his adventures during the trip. 他叙述了他在旅行中的冒险经历。
memoir n. 回忆录；1. The famous actress published her memoirs last year. 这位著名女演员去年出版了她的回忆录。
astonish vt. 使惊讶，使吃惊；1. The magician's performance astonished the audience. 魔术师的表演使观众大吃一惊。
thought of 考虑到，想到；1. She never thought of becoming a musician until she joined the school band. 在加入学校乐队之前，她从未想过要成为一名音乐家。
commonplace adj. 平凡的，普通的；1. The story had a commonplace ending that was expected by everyone. 这个故事有一个平凡的结局，所有人都预料到了。
curb vt. 控制，抑制；1. The government implemented measures to curb inflation. 政府采取措施控制通货膨胀。
smuggling n. 走私，偷运；1. The crackdown on smuggling has reduced illegal trade in the region. 对走私的打击减少了该地区的非法交易。
fentanyl n. 芬太尼；
synthetic opioid 合成阿片类药物；
参考译文
作为总统，唐纳德·特朗普多次提及对墨西哥贩毒集团的毒品实验室发射导弹的想法。“没有人会知道是我们做的。”他宣称，但这个想法最终被劝阻了。时任国防部长马克·埃斯珀在去年出版的回忆录中回忆了这一事件，对于炸毁邻国的想法感到震惊。如今，类似于这样的非同寻常事件正变得越来越普遍，因为共和党人认为更多地使用军事力量或威胁使用军事力量可以帮助控制美国的南部边境，并遏制芬太尼的走私活动。芬太尼是一种在墨西哥非法生产的合成阿片类药物。
段二
One congressman, Michael McCaul of Texas, has introduced a bill to classify fentanyl as a “chemical weapon”. Lindsey Graham, a senator from South Carolina, is pushing one to designate Mexican cartels as “foreign terrorist organisations”. Dan Crenshaw and Mike Waltz, congressmen from Texas and Florida respectively, have proposed another that would authorise “all necessary and appropriate force” against foreign states, organisations or people linked to trafficking fentanyl.
congressman n. 国会议员；1. The Congressman proposed a new bill to address environmental issues. 国会议员提出了一项新法案来解决环境问题。
classify vt. 分类，归类；1. The library staff worked to classify books according to different genres. 图书馆工作人员根据不同的体裁对图书进行分类。
designate vt. 指定，任命；1. The company decided to designate her as the new project manager. 公司决定任命她为新的项目经理。
respectively adv. 分别地；1. The siblings were born in 1990 and 1995, respectively. 这对兄妹分别出生于1990年和1995年。
trafficking n. 非法交易（尤指毒品买卖）；
参考译文
来自得克萨斯州的国会议员迈克尔·麦考尔已经提出了一项法案，将芬太尼归类为“化学武器”。来自南卡罗来纳州的参议员林赛·格雷厄姆正在推动一项将墨西哥贩毒集团定为“外国恐怖组织”的法案。来自得克萨斯州和佛罗里达州的国会议员丹·克伦肖和迈克·沃尔兹则提出了另一项法案，授权对与走私芬太尼有关的外国国家、组织或个人使用“一切必要和适当的武力”。
段三
Republican presidential candidates, too, are talking tough. Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, has suggested a naval blockade of Mexico-bound shipping to halt the import of fentanyl precursor chemicals from China. Nikki Haley, a former ambassador to the UN, has proposed sending in special forces with a warning to Mexico: “Either you do it or we do it.” Tim Scott, the other senator from South Carolina, declared in May, “I will allow the world’s greatest military to fight these terrorists.”
talk tough 说话强硬，咄咄逼人；1. The politician liked to talk tough during debates to impress the voters. 这位政治家喜欢在辩论中说话强硬，以给选民留下深刻印象。
naval blockade 海军封锁；1. During the war, the country implemented a naval blockade to cut off supplies to the enemy. 在战争期间，该国实施了海军封锁，切断了对敌人的供应。
halt vt. 停止，中止；1. The construction work was halted due to the heavy rain. 由于大雨，建筑工程被停工了。
precursor chemicals 前体化学品；1. Law enforcement agencies have been monitoring the trafficking of precursor chemicals. 执法机构一直在监控前体化学品的走私。
参考译文
共和党的总统候选人们也表现出强硬的态度。佛罗里达州州长罗恩·德桑提斯建议对前往墨西哥的货船进行海军封锁，以阻止从中国进口芬太尼前体化学品。前联合国大使妮基·哈利则提议派遣特种部队并向墨西哥发出警告：“要么你去做，要么我们来做。”南卡罗来纳州的另一位参议员蒂姆·斯科特在5月份表示：“我将允许全球最强大的军队与这些恐怖分子作战。”
精听党每日单词
enemy
/ˈenəmi/ n. 敌人，反对者；
muse about
思考，沉思；
missile
/ˈmɪs(ə)l/ n. 导弹；
Mexican cartels
墨西哥贩毒集团；
declare
/dɪˈkler/ vt. 宣布，声明；
talk out of
说服不做，劝阻；
defence secretary
国防部长；
recount
/rɪˈkaʊnt/ vt. 复述，重新讲述；叙述，说明；
memoir
/ˈmemwɑːr/ n. 回忆录；
astonish
/əˈstɑːnɪʃ/ vt. 使惊讶，使吃惊；
thought of
考虑到，想到；
commonplace
/ˈkɑːmənpleɪs/ adj. 平凡的，普通的；
curb
/kɜːrb/ vt. 控制，抑制；
smuggling
/ˈsmʌɡlɪŋ/ n. 走私，偷运；
fentanyl
/ˈfentənɪl/ n. 芬太尼；
synthetic opioid
合成阿片类药物；
congressman
/ˈkɑːŋɡrəsmən/ n. 国会议员；
classify
/ˈklæsɪfaɪ/ vt. 分类，归类；
designate
/ˈdezɪɡneɪt/ vt. 指定，任命；
respectively
/rɪˈspektɪvli/ adv. 分别地；
trafficking
/ˈtræfɪkɪŋ/ n. 非法交易（尤指毒品买卖）；
talk tough
说话强硬，咄咄逼人；
naval blockade
海军封锁；
halt
/hɔːlt/ vt. 停止，中止；
precursor chemicals
前体化学品；
精听党文化拓展
从2006年年底开始，墨西哥前总统卡尔德隆就大力打击贩毒集团，这也掀起了墨西哥毒品战争的序幕，到了2010年，政府统计因为毒品战争，共有2.8万人死亡。在当年的《华盛顿邮报》中，有人指出，墨西哥两个最大的毒枭兵力加起来在10万以上，而墨西哥的陆军现役部队在20万左右，预备役30万。也就是说，这些毒贩是有资格挑战墨西哥军队，威胁现有政权的。根据民调显示，有53%的民众对此次毒品战争的结果感到悲观，他们认为毒枭将是最后获胜的一方。墨西哥的经济部长曾哀愁地表示：如果此战打不赢，下一任的墨西哥总统将是毒枭。
毒枭如此强大，他们所使用的军火从哪里来，当然是美国！他们生产的毒品往哪里去？当然还是美国！这就是墨西哥人感叹自己离上帝太远，离美国太近的原因。
墨西哥是一个复杂的国家，其人民颇具聪明才智和独创性，但也饱受毒品贸易的摧残。公民社会的发育迟缓、财富分配的长期不当、贪污腐败的根深蒂固以及政治暴力的瘟疫般传播，进一步加重了社会的负担。在这些痼疾的作用下，墨西哥社会和经济受到毒品的扭曲。
精听党每日美句
Where there is smoke, there is fire.
无风不起浪。