小布什获评美国最不受欢迎在世总统大纲

George W. Bush has been named as the least popular living US president, according to a survey released yesterday.

The 64-year-old Republican nicknamed Dubya, who took America to war against terrorism, and under whose watch the financial downfall occurred, was labelled the most unpopular living leader of the last 50 years in the US by respected pollsters Gallup.

The 43rd president, Mr Bush - son of former president George H. W. Bush - was infamous for his gaffes at high-profile events and was regularly aped during his eight years in charge of America.

His election, in 2000, was contentious, too, after he defeated Democratic rival Al Gore by a slim margin, with the votes having to be re-counted.

And after the September 11 attacks in his first year in office Mr Bush waged War on Terrorism, ordered an assault on Afghanistan that year and marched into Iraq in 2003.

And in 2004 he was re-elected after another narrow victory, this time over John Kerry, and during his second term in the White House the Texas man's popularity plummeted.

He was roundly criticised for his slow reaction to dealing with Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans five years ago. With $90Billion to pay in damages and 1,836 dead, it was the costliest hurricane in US history.

During his penultimate year in charge, Mr Bush, in December 2007, took the country into its longest post-World War II recession.

According to Gallup's 2010 poll of the most popular US president of the last 50 years, John F. Kennedy, murdered in 1963, was top of the list with a 85 per cent approval rating.

Next came former actor Ronald Reagan with 74 per cent and Bill Clinton, Mr Bush's predecessor, who is the most popular living ex-president with 69 per cent, despite being caught up in a sex scandal.

George H. W. Bush, who Mr Clinton defeated in the 1992 election, was next with 64 per cent approval while behind him were Gerald Ford (61 percent) and Jimmy Carter (52 percent).

At the other end of the table, the man who prolonged American's war in Vietnam and was embroiled in the Watergate Scandal, Richard Nixon, was deemed the least popular president in the past half century with only 26 per cent approval.

Next came Mr Bush with 47 percent and third most unpopular was Lyndon Johnson (49 per cent), who took the reins from Mr Kennedy following his assassination.

据昨日公布的最新调查，美国前总统小布什获评最不受欢迎的在世美国总统。

64岁的共和党人布什被昵称为Dubya（译者注：布什姓名中W的谐称，此昵称用于嘲讽小布什的德克萨斯口音。因为小布什经常将W发音为“dubya”））。颇具公信力的美国民意调查机构盖洛普公布的民调结果显示，小布什被视为近50年来最不受欢迎的在世美国总统。小布什在任期间曾发动反恐战争，在他任期内还爆发了金融危机。

美国第43届总统、前总统老布什之子小布什因重大场合的失态而臭名远扬，在执政8年间，他的丑态经常被人模仿。

在2000年的大选中，他以微弱优势击败民主党对手阿尔·戈尔，选举委员会不得不重新计票。这一选举结果颇受争议。

小布什入主白宫的第一年就发生了9•11事件，他随后发动了反恐战争，并于同年发动阿富汗战争，2003年又发动了伊拉克战争。

2004年的总统大选中，小布什击败对手约翰•克里，再次以微弱优势胜出。在白宫的第二任期内，这位德州牛仔的支持率开始急剧下降。

小布什还因为处理卡特里娜飓风反应迟缓饱受批评，发生在5年前的这场飓风使新奥尔良蒙受巨大损失，导致1836人遇难，损失达900亿美元，是美国历史上造成损失最大的飓风。

在布什任期的倒数第二年，也就是2007年12月，美国陷入二战以来最严重的经济衰退。

根据盖洛普公布的调查，1963年遇害的约翰•F•肯尼迪被评为过去50年间最受欢迎的美国总统，支持率高达85%。

排在第二位的是演员出身的罗纳德•里根，支持率为74%。小布什的前任比尔•克林顿尽管曾身陷性丑闻，但仍获评最受欢迎的在世总统，支持率为69%。

在1992年大选中败给克林顿的前总统老布什紧随其后，支持率为64%，随后分别为杰拉尔德•福特（支持率61%），和吉米•卡特（支持率52%）。

曾将美国拖入越战泥潭、并身陷水门丑闻的前总统理查德•尼克松在榜单中垫底，被评为过去50年间最不受欢迎的美国总统，支持率仅为26%。

其后分别为小布什（支持率47%）以及林登•约翰逊（支持率49%）。约翰逊在肯尼迪遇刺后就任美国总统。

Vocabulary:

gaffe: a social blunder; faux pas（出丑，失态）

penultimate: next to the last（倒数第二的）

embroil: to bring into discord or conflict; involve in contention or strife（卷入，牵连）