美联社新闻一分钟 2008-06-21

（单词翻译）

1. The Mississippi River is set to crest¹ early next week in and around St. Louis. It has already broken through a number of levees across Missouri. There are fears that more rain in the coming days could make matters worse.

2. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton are set to share the same stage together.His campaign says the former presidential candidate² and rival³ will speak out in favor of Obama at a rally⁴ next week.

3. Former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan says he doesn't know if any crimes were committed in efforts to cover up the leak of CIA operative’s name. However he told the House Committee that both President Bush and Vice⁵ President Cheney wanted him to say Cheney's chief of staff wasn’t involved.

4. Naomi Campbell has pleaded⁶ guilty to assaulting⁷ two police officers during an “air rage” incident at Heathrow Airport in London. She now has to complete 200 hours of community service and pay more than 6000 dollars in fines.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1. set adj.[not before noun] informal someone who is set for something is ready for it

set to do sth

2.crest [transitive]v.

formal to reach the top of a hill or mountain

3.cover up

to prevent people from discovering mistakes or unpleasant facts

4.operative [countable]n.
someone who does work that is secret in some way, especially for a government organization
CIA/FBI/intelligence etc operatives

5.chief of staff
an official of high rank who advises the person in charge of an organization or government:
the White House chief of staff

6.Naomi Campbell (born May 22, 1970) is an English supermodel, singer, author, and fashion designer.

7.Community service
refers to service that a person performs for the benefit of his or her local community. People become involved in community service for a range of reasons — for some, serving community is an altruistic⁸ act, for others it is a punishment.