布什厚礼送夹克 布朗不领“情”

布什厚礼送夹克 布朗不领“情”
Bush gives Brown a bomber

US President George W. Bush gave Brown a present of a fur-trimmed leather bomber

It is an unlikely gift to give a man seldom seen out of a suit.

Perhaps the giver, George Bush, was stuck for ideas, and tried to think of something he'd like to find in his stocking on Christmas morning.

Or, more likely, he's trying a bit of subtle American humour on the recipient, Gordon Brown.

US President George W. Bush gave Brown a present of a fur-trimmed leather bomber -- or aviator -- jacket when the prime minister visited him at his Camp David retreat, north of Washington.

The brown jacket has a name tag with the prime minister's official title -- "Rt Hon (Right Honourable) Gordon Brown" -- on the left breast and a Camp David badge with the presidential seal on the other.

The gift, in a large, gold-papered box, was left in full view in Brown's chartered British Airways Boeing 767 jet as it returned to London on July 31.

Brown's first meeting as prime minister with Bush was a far cry from the get-together between Mr. Bush and Tony Blair in 2001, at which the President wore his own bomber jacket and Mr. Blair a pair of very tight purple cords.

And the contrast was apparently deliberate-Downing Street is said to believe the 2001 meeting set the tone for a relationship that made it difficult for Mr. Blair to speak candidly to Mr. Bush.

In any case, the new Prime Minister rarely goes out in public in anything but a jacket and tie.

The value of the jacket from President Bush is likely to exceed the ￡140 limit on ministerial gifts, which means Mr Brown must decide whether to buy it.

Although Brown reaffirmed the "special relationship" between the two countries and continued support for the fight against global extremism, he did not give a gung-ho impression of wanting to be Bush's "wing man". 

far cry   :大不相同的东西

gung-ho :起劲的；强烈的

送这个礼物给一个习惯穿西装的人似乎有点不讨巧。

也许是布什实在想不出送什么礼物好，所以索性就送了个他自己希望得到的圣诞礼物。

或者更可能的是，他想在戈登·布朗身上玩一把美国式幽默。

英国首相戈登·布朗在华盛顿北部的总统度假山庄戴维营会见美国总统布什时，收到布什送给他的一件毛领皮制飞行员夹克。

这件棕色夹克的左胸处有一个带有“戈登·布朗阁下”字样的标签，右胸处则缀有一个“戴维营”徽章和总统印章。

7月31日，在布朗首相乘坐英国航空波音767包机返回伦敦的途中，这个装在一个大金色纸盒中的礼物被打开。

布朗出任首相后与布什的首次会面与2001年布莱尔与布什的会面截然不同，当时布什穿了件飞行员夹克，而布莱尔则穿了条紧身灯芯绒裤。

这一差别显然是有意为之--据说，唐宁街认为2001年的会面为之后的英美关系奠定了基调，布莱尔总是很难与布什总统开诚布公的对话。

无论怎样，英国的新首相还是习惯以西装革履的形象出现在公众面前。

布什总统送给布朗的这件夹克价值可能超过了140英镑的限额（英国政府规定内阁官员在外交事务中可接收的私人礼物限额为140英镑），这意味着布朗必须得拿主意是否要掏腰包买这件礼物。

尽管布朗首相一再重申两国的“关系不同寻常”，而且将继续支持全球反恐战争，但他并没有表现出要当布什“小跟班”的意思。