The idea behind “the rule of law” is that it is laws based on logical
reasons and clear thinking that should govern social life. “We live under a rule
of law, not of men.” American teachers tell their students. The students accept
the idea. They believe that “no man is above the law”, and that laws apply
equally to all people no matter how wealthy they are, what their personal
connections are, or what their stations in life are. Their faith in the rule of
law explains the belief many Americans held, and many foreigners could not
understand, that President Richard Nixon should be removed from office as a
result of his behavior in connection with what was called “Watergate
Scandal(水门事件)”. Nixon had broken the law and therefore should be punished,
Americans believed, even if he was the President.
The belief in the rule of law goes beyond the area of politics to other
areas of life that are governed by formal rules and procedures. To get a job
with government institutions, for example, or to get government funding for a
research project, one must follow published procedures and show that one meets
the published requirements. Personal connections are not supposed to matter
under the rule of law.
This is not to say that personal contacts, wealth, and social influence do
not matter in situations where laws and rules are to be obeyed. They may. What
is said above describes the ideal with which Americans agree. In reality,
connections can sometimes help a person get a government job. Rich people can
sometimes go unpunished for illegal behavior that poor people would be likely to
be punished for. But in general the rule of law prevails, and Americans are
proud that it does.
问题：
1.The word “stations”(Para. 1) is closest in meaning to .
A.stages
B.situations
C.successes
D.social positions
【参考答案】D
[考点]词语理解题
【精析】D 由后面紧跟着举的尼克松总统的例子可知，只要触犯了法律，不管地位如何，一定要受到惩罚，哪怕他是总统，且根据第一段中的wealthy(富有的)， personal connections(人际关系)可推知，station应是“社会地位”的意思。故选D。
2. The writer mentions President Richard Nixon in the first paragraph in order to show that .
A.no man is above the law
B.the president should make sure of the rule of law
C.the rule of law is important in politics
D.American people have the right to remove the president
【参考答案】A
[考点]推理判断题
【精析】A 根据第一段第五、六句“They believe that ‘no man is above the law'…that President Richard Nixon should be removed from office…”可推知，作者举尼克松总统的例子是想说明美国人的“no man is above the law”这一信仰是非常坚定的。故选A。
3. It can be learned from the last paragraph that in the United States the rule of law .
A.is not carried out as fully as it should be
B.makes poor people also likely to be successful
C.is, in reality, almost unlikely to realize
D.makes sure that everyone is punished for his wrongdoing
【参考答案】A
[考点]推理判断题
【精析】A 根据最后一段第四、五句“In reality, connections can sometimes…that poor people would be likely to be punished for.”可推知，在美国，法律并没有完全按照它应该的那样被执行。故选A。
4. The pronoun “They” in the second line of the last paragraph refers to all of the following EXCEPT .
A.personal connections
B.laws and rules
C.social influence
D.wealth
【参考答案】B
[考点]推理判断题
【精析】B 最后一段前两句的意思为“这并不是说人际关系、财富和社会影响在法律和法规要被遵守的地方不起作用。它们可能起作用。”由此可推知，“They”指的是前文中的“人际关系、财富和社会影响”。故选B。
5. The main idea of the last paragraph is .
A.Americans are idealistic(理想主义的) about laws
B.rich people can sometimes go unpunished for illegal behavior
C.the American employment system is unfair
D.laws are more important than personal connections or influence in most cases in the US
【参考答案】D
[考点]主旨大意题
【精析】D 根据最后一段可知，在美国现实社会中，人际关系、财富和社会影响也影响着法律法规的实施，但整体来说，美国人还是很为美国的法治社会而自豪的，法律法规依然盛行。所以可推知，本段主要讲述的是：在大多情况下法律在美国要比人际关系和社会影响重要。根据最后一句的“But”也可知，其后的部分才是本段的主要内容。故选项D最能概括段意。