AP美联社一分钟新闻 2009-01-24

（单词翻译）

1.President Barack Obama and Congressional Democrats¹ are seeking to ease Republican concerns about a massive economic stimulus² plan. The president and top Democrats met at the White House with GOP leaders and promised to consider some of their recommendations.

2.There's a new face going into the Senate. New York representative Kirsten Gillibrand was tapped to fill Hilary Clinton's post. The governor says she's the best person for the job.

3.Crews in Australia are struggling to save a number of whales that beached themselves. Only a handful of the 45 are still alive and crews are pouring water over them as they wait for high tide.

4.Remember this from the inauguration³? That's Yo-Yo Ma and Itzhak Perlman playing just before the swearing-in. Well, we’ve learned that what you heard wasn't what they were playing but rather a recorded audio tape.

WORDS IN THE NEWS

1.tap: v.

to pick, to choose somebody to fill a vacant position in an organization or a corporation, ect.

2.beach: v.

if a whale beaches itself or is beached, it swims onto the shore and cannot get back in the water