VOA慢速英语:American History: Ford Leads Nation After Nixon Resigns

短语讲解：

1. Gerald Ford was sworn into office on August ninth, nineteen seventy-four. Ford was vice president to Richard Nixon, who had announced the day before that he would resign.

swear into office宣誓就职
例句：The new president has been sworn into office.
新总统已宣誓就职。

2. If Nixon had not resigned, he might have been removed from office.

remove from将(某人)撤〔免〕职
例句：He was severely criticized and removed from his post.
他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。

3. As we bind up the internal wounds of Watergate -- more painful and more poisonous than those of foreign wars -- let us restore the 'Golden Rule' to our political process and let brotherly love purge our hearts of suspicion and of hate.

bind up系, 扎, 包扎; 把(文章等)合订成书
例句：You must bathe that wound before you bind it up.
包扎伤口之前必须先清洗。

4. Gerald Ford became the only leader in American history to have served both as vice president and president without being elected.

serve as充当, 担任
例句：The general had served as a soldier in the earlier war.
在早期的战争中, 这位将军曾当过士兵。

5. After Nixon left office, he could have been charged with crimes for his part in covering up the events of Watergate.

charge with指控…犯有罪
例句：They charged him with negligence of duty.
他们指责他玩忽职守。
cover up掩盖, 掩饰
例句：She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.
她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。

6. Mrs. Holtzman, I was fully cognizant of the fact that the president, on resignation, was accountable for any criminal charges.

be accountable for对……负责；是……的原因
例句：I am accountable to my superiors for my actions.
我应该为自己的行为对上司负责。

7. I repeat – and I repeat with emphasis: The purpose of the pardon was to try and get the United States, the Congress, the president, and the American people focusing on the serious problems we have, both at home and abroad.

focus on对(某事或做某事)予以注意; 集中于
例句：Today we're going to focus on the question of homeless people.
今天, 我们主要讨论无家可归者的问题。

8. And I was absolutely convinced then, as I am now, that if we had had this series – an indictment, a trial, a conviction, and anything else that transpired after that – that the attention of the president, the congress, and the American people would have been diverted from the problems that we have to solve.

divert from使偏离
例句：Money collected through taxes is often diverted from the purpose for which it was intended.
税款的使用意图常被改变。

9. He hoped better control would prevent future administrations from abusing the constitutional rights of Americans, as Nixon had done.

prevent from阻止, 防止
例句：His prompt action prevented the fire from spreading.
他的果断行动制止了火势的蔓延。

10. But Kissinger had also received much criticism. Critics accused him of interfering with civil liberties in the name of national security.

accuse of指责, 控告
例句：We accused him of taking bribes.
我们控告他受贿。
interfere with干预, 阻挠, 妨碍, 阻止
例句：The noise interferes with my work.
这噪音妨碍我的工作。

11. Some were to go to an apartment building where a helicopter would pick them up from the roof.

pick up安排接取; 使搭乘; 搭救
例句：Please wait at the school gate. John will pick you up there.
请在校门口等候, 约翰会到那里接你。