In face of sagging approval ratings, Russia's president also disciplined underlings.

VOA: standard.2010.08.10

What it meant was that in principle, your power was greater than any challenge that could come from those underlings, those craven reptiles in your imagination over whom you ruled.

这意味着在原则上,你的权利大到,不会受到属下的任何质疑,在你的眼里他们应该是低声下气的应声虫

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