Democrats hail new era for US

Level 1 Elementary

1 Key words

Complete the sentences using key words from the text.

a bill to hail a jet a lobbyist minimum wage

to proclaim   to redeploy   to reject   a stalemate   stem cell research  take office 

1. __________ is a proposal for a new law.

2. __________ is a situation in which progress is impossible because the people cannot agree.

3. __________ something is to move it to another place or a different job.

4. __________ something means you say no to it.

5. When politicians __________ , they begin their work.

6. __________ or __________ something means you say it publicly.

7. __________ is a type of expensive plane.

8. __________ is someone who tries to influence politicians or people in authority.

9. The __________ is the lowest legal amount of money you earn for working.

10. __________ is medical research using cells taken from an animal or person at an early stage of development.

2 Find the information

Match the beginnings and endings to make sentences about the text.

1. The Democrats ____

2. Nancy Pelosi is ____
3. Keith Ellison is ____
4. Harry Reid is ____
5. The American people ____
6. The House of Representatives and the Senate ____
7. George Bush is ____

a. ____ against stem cell research.

b. ____ control both houses of Congress.
c. ____ have rejected a war without end in Iraq.
d. ____ the Democrat Senate leader.
e. ____ the first Muslim in Congress.
f. ____ the first woman speaker of the House of Representatives.
g. ____ will focus on Iraq when they pass new laws.
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NEWS LESSONS / Democrats hail new era for US / Elementary

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Democrats hail new era for US
Level 1 Elementary
The Democrats hail new era for US as inducements as free seats at basketball games
they sweep into Congress and trips on private jets.

by Suzanne Goldenberg in Washington In the Senate, where the Democratic majority is

January 5, 2007 very thin, Mr Reid said yesterday that the focus 
would remain on Iraq.
A new era was proclaimed in Washington as
the Democratic party recaptured control of both The Democrats have also promised to raise the
houses of Congress for the first time in 12 years.  federal minimum wage for the first time in ten 
years, as well as make federal money available
“The Democrats are back,” said Nancy Pelosi, for stem cell research. But the White House
who made history when she became the first  announced that Mr Bush is still opposed to 
woman speaker of the House of Representatives. stem cell research. Mr Bush warned of further 
confrontations. “If the Congress chooses to pass
“This is an historic moment - for the Congress,
bills that are simply political statements, they will
and for the women of this country. It is a moment
have chosen stalemate,” he wrote in the Wall
for which we have waited more than 200 years,”
Street Journal this week.
Ms Pelosi told Congress. 

Keith Ellison of Minnesota became the first 
© Guardian News & Media 2007
Muslim to serve in Congress, taking his office on 
First published in the Guardian, 5/1/07
a Qur’an.

The official message from Ms Pelosi as well 
as the new Democratic Senate majority leader,
Harry Reid, was about cooperation with their
Republican opponents. But Ms Pelosi said that 
George Bush would face new and energetic
opposition. The President had a Republican
House and Senate in his first six years in the 
White House.

“The American people were clear about the need

for a new direction in Iraq. The American people
rejected an open-ended obligation to a war
without end,” Ms Pelosi said. 

“It is the responsibility of the President to

articulate a new plan for Iraq that makes it
clear to the Iraqis that they must defend their
own streets and their own security, a plan that
promotes stability in the region and that allows
us to responsibly redeploy American forces,” Ms 
Pelosi said.

Ms Pelosi plans to use the Democrats’ new 
majority in domestic politics as well. She wants
to begin almost immediately with measures
to clarify relationships between lobbyists and
politicians. The move would ban such
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© Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2007

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NEWS LESSONS / Democrats hail new era for US / Elementary

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Democrats hail new era for US
Level 1 Elementary

3 Comprehension check

Tick the correct sentence.

1. a) The Democrats have not had control of Congress for the past 12 years.
b) The Democrats have had control of Congress for the past 12 years.

2. a) Nancy Pelosi wants the President to defend the streets of Iraq.

b) Nancy Pelosi wants the Iraqis to defend the streets of Iraq.

3. a) Lobbyists give free basketball tickets and jet rides to politicians.

b) Politicians give free basketball tickets and jet rides to lobbyists.

4. a) The Democrats want to give more money to poor workers.

b) The Democrats want to give less money to poor workers.

5. a) George Bush and the Democrats agree about stem cell research.
b) George Bush and the Democrats do not agree about stem cell research.

4 Vocabulary 1: Opposites

Find the opposite of these words in the text.

1. the last ________

2. minority ________

3. to attack ________

4. foreign politics ________

5. to permit ________

6. minimum ________

7. in favour of ________
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© Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2007

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NEWS LESSONS / Democrats hail new era for US / Elementary

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Democrats hail new era for US
Level 1 Elementary

5 Vocabulary 2: Word building

Complete the table.

noun adjective

energy 1.________

2. ________ political

history 3.________

4. ________ responsible

availability 5.________

6. ________ secure

6 Vocabulary 3: American politics

Find the following five words connected to American politics in the wordsearch:

The major political parties in the USA. (2 words)

The name for the House of Representatives and the Senate. (1 word)

The title of the leader of the House. (1 word)

Where the President lives and works. (1 word)

W J T A F V H C M R
R H A A O Q A W E H
S T I B R W K P H C
F P J T P C U L F J
E L E K E B O R T J
Z U V A L H F M O G
N E R I K B O P E R
K J C O P E L U B D
I A S U C B R J S U
N C O N G R E S S E
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© Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2007

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NEWS LESSONS / Democrats hail new era for US / Elementary

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