Republican favorite Kevin McCarthy was finally elected speaker of the US House of Representatives early Saturday last week, ending a paralyzing standoff with right-wing holdouts that raised concerns about his party’s ability to exercise power in Congress.
McCarthy’s victory required an historic 15 rounds of voting and was secured only after a late-night session of high drama that saw Republican members almost come to blows as tempers flared.
It also required major concessions to the small group of Republican conservatives who had opposed his candidacy, and turned what would normally be a showcase of party unity into a days-long display of internal division.
Photo: Reuters 照片：路透
The speaker wields key influence in Washington by presiding over House business and is second in line to the presidency, after the vice president.
As he accepted the gavel in the early hours of Saturday, McCarthy, who was backed by former US president Donald Trump, outlined the Republicans’ aggressive lines of attack ahead of the 2024 presidential race.
He vowed to “pass bills to fix the nation’s challenges, from the wide open Southern border to ‘America last’ energy policies, to woke indoctrination in our schools.”
Photo: AP 照片：美聯社
On “America’s long-term challenges -- the debt and the rise of the Chinese Communist Party -- Congress must be with one voice,” the 57-year-old Californian told the House.
McCarthy, who represents the conservative enclave of Bakersfield, California, has been in politics since his late teens.
The son of a firefighter and grandson of a cattle rancher, he married his high school sweetheart.
Photo: AP 照片：美聯社
His career has soared since he became the minority Republican leader in the California Assembly in 2003, just one year after being elected.
Four years later, he was elected to Washington, and moved rapidly up the ladder in the House as a team player and organizer who readily bared his ambition to become party leader.
Affable in the face of adversity, and a prolific fundraiser for his fellow lawmakers, McCarthy is no policy strategist or conservative ideologue.
Photo: AP 照片：美聯社
Instead, his rise has come from his willingness to tackle the tricky task of trying to keep his party -- which has been turned upside down by Trump -- on the rails and focused on opposing the Democrats’ agenda.
But it remains to be seen if he can charm hardline conservative dissidents.
McCarthy’s seeming lack of deep ideological underpinnings and his skepticism of party hardliners has made him a regular target of the Republican right, especially Trump supporters.
(AFP)
上週六凌晨，共和黨熱門人選凱文‧麥卡錫終於當選美國眾議院議長，結束了與右翼勢力的僵持局面，這僵局令人對共和黨是否能在國會行使權力感到憂心。
經過了歷史性的15輪投票，議事挑燈夜戰、共和黨成員幾乎上演全武行的火爆場面後，麥卡錫才得以勝出。
麥卡錫之所以能勝選，其中因素還包括反對他參選的一小群共和黨保守派做出重大讓步，讓這通常是展示黨內團結的場合變成長達數天的內部分裂家醜外揚。
美國眾議院議長在華盛頓主持眾議院事務，影響力很大，是美國總統的第二順位繼承人，僅次於副總統。
獲前總統唐納‧川普背書的麥卡錫，在接下議事槌時概述了共和黨在2024年總統大選之前的激進路線。
他誓言「通過法案來解決國家所面臨的挑戰，從門戶洞開的南部邊境到『美國最後』的能源政策，再到我們學校中的思想覺醒」。
這位57歲的加州人對眾議院表示，「對於美國的長期挑戰——債務和中國共產黨的崛起——國會必須口徑一致」。
麥卡錫代表加州的保守派飛地貝克斯菲爾德，他從十多歲就踏入政壇。
他是消防員之子、養牛場主之孫，娶了高中時代的戀人為妻。
當選加州議員僅一年後，他在2003年成為加州議會的少數派共和黨領袖，自此他的從政之路步步高升。
四年後，他獲選進入華盛頓國會殿堂，並作為合群的團隊成員及動員者在眾議院迅速晉升，並毫不遲疑展現成為黨魁的抱負。
麥卡錫在逆境中表現得和藹可親，且經常為其他議員募款，他既不是政策戰略家，也不是保守派思想家。
相反地，他的崛起是因為他願意解決一項棘手的任務，即試圖讓他的政黨——已經被川普搞得天翻地覆——保持正常運轉，並聚焦反對民主黨的議程。
但他是否能夠吸引持不同政見的強硬保守派，仍有待觀察。
麥卡錫似乎缺乏深刻的意識形態基礎，而且他對黨內強硬派持懷疑態度，這使他經常成為共和黨右翼的攻擊目標，尤其是川普的支持者。
（台北時報林俐凱編譯）
A: Brazilian jiu-jitsu, known as “BJJ,” has become more and more popular. Even Hollywood stars like Halle Berry and Tom Hardy are obsessed with it. B: Some Asian stars, such as Taiwanese actor Eddie Peng and South Korean actor Lee Joon-gi, have also practiced this martial art. A: BJJ is not just a martial art, but also a combat sport. B: I’ve always wanted to try it, but I’m worried about getting injured. A: Diana Wang, a US doctor of physical therapy, is holding a BJJ seminar at PMA Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in Taipei Friday night. Let’s go check out how we
Picture a 45-foot-long animal with a 5-foot-long skull and 3-foot-long arms. It may not seem strange until you realize that a human with those proportions would be 6 feet tall with 5-inch arms. Although the Tyrannosaurus rex went extinct 65 million years ago, the mystery of its unusual body __1__ has fascinated scientists for over a century. Barnum Brown, the paleontologist who first discovered T. rex fossils, initially found it hard to believe that the tiny arms belonged to such a __2__ creature. One of his colleagues speculated that the short forelimbs might have been used to hold the
A: Actually, Brazilian jiu-jitsu is particularly good for small people like you. B: Really? How so? A: According to Diana Wang, a US doctor of physical therapy, the BJJ’s purpose is to help smaller, weaker people defend themselves by using various techniques, such as leverage. B: That sounds interesting. What time does Dr Wang’s BJJ seminar begin tonight? A: The event is scheduled for 7:30pm at PMA Brazilian Jiu-jitsu in Taipei. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. A: 其實你的個子比較小，很適合練巴西柔術呢。 B: 真的嗎？為什麼？ A: 據美國理療醫師王幼瑞博士說，巴西柔術的概念是讓弱小的人，也能利用槓桿作用等技巧防身。 B: 真有趣，王醫師的巴柔研討會幾點開始？ A: 今晚7點半在「台北巴柔運動館」，免費入場自由樂捐唷！ （By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張迪）
Dogs’ noses are incredibly keen. They can even detect changes in cortisol levels in human sweat and breath. Known as the “stress hormone,” cortisol increases when humans are under pressure. Recent research indicates that the smell of human stress can influence a dog’s behavior and emotions. In the study, human volunteers were exposed to the stressful tasks of preparing and delivering a speech on the spot and then solving math problems. __1__ Researchers collected sweat and breath samples from the volunteers on pieces of cloth during both their stressful and restful states. Meanwhile, other researchers worked with 18
RSS