奥巴马推动失业救济金延长

 　　奥巴马推动失业救济金延长

　　WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 (Xinhua)-- U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday stepped up pressure on the Congress to extend unemployment benefits by approving the bill which has just cleared procedural hurdle¹ in the Senate.

　　Speaking at an event at the White House, Obama said the legislation would restore benefits to millions of people who have been struggling to cope with the "aftermath of the worst economic crisis in generations."

　　"So letting unemployment insurance expire for millions of Americans is wrong. Congress should make things right. I am very appreciative² that they're are on their way to doing just that," said Obama, flanked by a group of people who had benefited from the government support.

　　"We've got to get this across the finish line without obstruction³ or delay, and we need the House of Representatives to be able to vote for it as well. And that's the bottom line," he added.

　　In a 60-37 vote earlier Tuesday, the Democratic-controlled Senate passed a motion to begin debate on the bill, which would provide a three-month extension of the benefits program. An estimated 1.3 million unemployed⁴ Americans saw their benefits lapse⁵ when the program expired on Dec. 28.

　　The benefits came from the Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, enacted⁶ under the Bush administration in 2008 to provide supplementary⁷ relief for the long-term unemployed who have exhausted⁸ standard state benefits.

　　Democrats⁹ argued that the extended unemployment benefits provide vital lifeline to the unemployed and critical economic stimulus¹⁰ to the U.S. economy by boosting consumer spending, while Republicans said unemployment benefits can be a disincentive for job hunting, and with the jobless rate now at a five-year low of 7 percent, such emergency federal assistance is no longer necessary.

　　Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said before the vote Tuesday that his party could accept extending the federal benefits only if they were paid for.

　　Extending jobless benefits is part of a larger message of economic fairness the White House and Democrats seek to highlight in the new year.

1 hurdle   

n.跳栏，栏架；障碍，困难；vi.进行跨栏赛

参考例句：

• The weather will be the biggest hurdle so I have to be ready.天气将会是最大的障碍，所以我必须要作好准备。
• She clocked 11.6 seconds for the 80 metre hurdle.八十米跳栏赛跑她跑了十一秒六。

2 appreciative   

adj.有鉴赏力的，有眼力的；感激的

参考例句：

• She was deeply appreciative of your help.她对你的帮助深表感激。
• We are very appreciative of their support in this respect.我们十分感谢他们在这方面的支持。

3 obstruction   

n.阻塞，堵塞；障碍物

参考例句：

• She was charged with obstruction of a police officer in the execution of his duty.她被指控妨碍警察执行任务。
• The road was cleared from obstruction.那条路已被清除了障碍。

4 unemployed   

adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的

参考例句：

• There are now over four million unemployed workers in this country.这个国家现有四百万失业人员。
• The unemployed hunger for jobs.失业者渴望得到工作。

5 lapse   

n.过失，流逝，失效，抛弃信仰，间隔；vi.堕落，停止，失效，流逝；vt.使失效

参考例句：

• The incident was being seen as a serious security lapse.这一事故被看作是一次严重的安全疏忽。
• I had a lapse of memory.我记错了。

6 enacted   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• legislation enacted by parliament 由议会通过的法律
• Outside in the little lobby another scene was begin enacted. 外面的小休息室里又是另一番景象。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

7 supplementary   

adj.补充的，附加的

参考例句：

• There is a supplementary water supply in case the rain supply fails.万一主水源断了，我们另外有供水的地方。
• A supplementary volume has been published containing the index.附有索引的增补卷已经出版。

8 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

9 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 stimulus   

n.刺激，刺激物，促进因素，引起兴奋的事物

参考例句：

• Regard each failure as a stimulus to further efforts.把每次失利看成对进一步努力的激励。
• Light is a stimulus to growth in plants.光是促进植物生长的一个因素。