美国国家公共电台 NPR--Nevada treasurer calls the U.S. debt impasse a disturbing 'manufactured crisis'

Nevada treasurer¹ calls the U.S. debt impasse² a disturbing 'manufactured crisis'

Transcript³

If President Biden and Congress fail to swiftly resolve a debt ceiling standoff, the federal government could default on its debt, running out of money to pay the bills as soon as June 1.

The Treasury⁴ Department says it's taking "extraordinary measures" to prevent a default, but some state treasurers⁵ worry about the impact on their budgets and residents.

Zach Conine, the state treasurer of Nevada, tells NPR's A Martinez on Morning Edition that the threat of default is affecting people's behavior. "Full faith and credit should be a promise that we don't need to wake up in the middle of the night thinking about."

This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Zach Conine: Here in Nevada, we are so very concerned that if Congress doesn't get this right, that the impacts are going to be felt in the state for a long time. We're just coming out of an incredibly difficult time for Nevada. And we've had a great recovery. But this threatens to put it all at risk.

On the threat of a potential recession

A Martinez: Now, economists⁶ say default could tip the U.S. into a full-blown recession. What happens to a state like Nevada with a high unemployment rate?

Zach Conine: What we always say is that when the rest of the country gets the sniffles, Nevada gets the flu. And that's absolutely going to be the case. You know, we still have an economy that is very, very dependent on travel and tourism. And so if we see protracted⁷ job losses, when we see major declines in the market, we see losses right here in Las Vegas. We see losses around the state. People just don't come as much. And that would be an absolutely insane thing to have happen – just so that we can play some political games.

On the prospect⁸ of spending cuts

A Martinez: Will you cut spending as a result of there's just this threat – or if it happens?

Zach Conine: Well, at some point, if we start seeing decreases in revenue, we'll have to cut spending. But right now, Nevada is dealing⁹ with a very, very good economic situation coming out of the pandemic... And it's one thing to deal with a global pandemic and to make the hard decisions that Nevadans had to make during that. But to deal with a manufactured crisis is frankly¹⁰ just a little disturbing to us.

On readying for a potential default

A Martinez: What, if anything, is the state preparing for – just in case? I mean, is it even possible to prepare, considering the uncertainty¹¹?

Zach Conine: It is. And we start thinking about things like having more cash in the bank when there has been – when there have been shutdowns in the federal government before. Sometimes the state has to lay out money in order to make sure that we're ready to pay whatever those bills are that typically would be paid for by the federal government. Our concern this time is we just don't know that we can count on them to pay their bills when they come due to the state.

1 treasurer   

n.司库，财务主管

参考例句：

• Mr. Smith was succeeded by Mrs.Jones as treasurer.琼斯夫人继史密斯先生任会计。
• The treasurer was arrested for trying to manipulate the company's financial records.财务主管由于试图窜改公司财政帐目而被拘留。

2 impasse   

n.僵局；死路

参考例句：

• The government had reached an impasse.政府陷入绝境。
• Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

5 treasurers   

（团体等的）司库，财务主管( treasurer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• At the same time, individuals need to hold their pension fund managers and state treasurers accountable. 同时，个人需要使他们的养老基金管理者和州财务人员变得负有责任。
• Last question, what's your advice for our treasurers to get through the crisis? 最后的问题，对于司库们更好的度过危机，您有什么建议吗？

6 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 protracted   

adj.拖延的；延长的v.拖延“protract”的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The war was protracted for four years. 战争拖延了四年。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We won victory through protracted struggle. 经过长期的斗争，我们取得了胜利。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

9 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

10 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

11 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。