CNN美国有线新闻 美财长: 不提高债务上限将导致经济危机

Let's start today by talking about the debt ceiling in the United States.

今天让我们从美国的债务上限开始谈起。

In case you're still unsure about exactly what the debt ceiling is, we've got you covered.

如果你还不确定债务上限到底是什么意思，我们会帮你搞定。

You can also call it the government's debt limit.

你也可以将其称之为政府的债务最高限额。

It's the total amount of money the United States government is authorized¹ to borrow to meet its existing legal obligations, like paying for military salaries, tax refunds², Social Security and Medicare benefits, and interest on the national debt among other things.

它是授权美国政府为履行现有法律义务而借入的资金总额，这些义务包括支付军人工资、退税、社会保障和医疗保险福利，以及国债利息等。

But once the debt limit is reached and if the government can't borrow any more money,

不过，一旦达到债务上限，如果政府不能再借入更多的金额，

that means the government could fail to make payments, fail to take care of its own obligations by defaulting on all national debt, and that would greatly impact the U.S. government's reputation across the globe.

那么，这意味着政府可能拖欠所有国家的债务，无法进行支付且无法履行自身义务，这将极大地影响美国政府在全球的声誉。

We'll hear more now from White House correspondent Arlette Saenz on what the United States government could be facing in the near future and what the impact could be.

白宫记者阿莱特·萨恩茨将为我们带来关于美国政府在不久的将来可能面临的情况以及可能会产生的影响的详细报道。

President Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy are heading towards a high-stakes showdown over the debt ceilings.

拜登总统和众议院议长凯文·麦卡锡正在就债务上限问题进行一场重大的对决。

This will be the first time Biden McCarthy are meeting in person since McCarthy became House Speaker and both sides have said the debt limit will be on the table.

这将是自麦卡锡成为众议院议长以来，麦卡锡与拜登首次面对面会晤，双方表示将要公开商讨债务上限问题。

Now both men have said that they don't want to see the nation default on their debts but for the time being they disagree on how to get there.

现在，双方都表示，他们不希望看到美国拖欠债务，但就目前而言，他们在如何实现这一目标上存在分歧。

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has insisted that he believes there should be negotiations³ and that ultimately, they believe that there need to be spending cuts if the debt ceiling will be raised.

众议院议长凯文·麦卡锡坚称，他认为应该进行多次协商，他们最终认为，提高债务上限需要削减开支。

But President Biden and the White House have insisted that there will be no negotiations over this, and that Congress must fulfill⁴ their obligation to raise the debt ceiling.

但拜登总统和白宫坚称，不会就此进行协商，国会必须履行提高债务上限的义务。

A spokesperson for the White House saying in a statement, quote, the president will ask Speaker McCarthy if he intends to meet his constitutional obligation to prevent a national default, as every other House and Senate leader in U.S. history has done, and as leaders McConnell Schumer and Jeffries have pledged to do.

白宫发言人在一份声明中表示，总统将询问麦卡锡议长是否打算履行宪法义务，防止国家拖欠债务，正如美国历史上其他参众两院领导人所做的那样，正如麦康奈尔·舒默和杰弗里斯承诺的那样。

The president, they add, will underscore that the economic security of all Americans cannot be held hostage to force unpopular cuts on working families.

他们补充说，总统将强调，不能绑架全体美国人的经济安全，迫使工薪家庭不情愿地削减预算。

Now, Treasury⁵ Secretary Janet Yellen has said that they are using extraordinary measures until this moment and that the nation's debt limit must be raised by early June.

现在，财政部长珍妮特·耶伦表示，到目前为止，他们一直在使用非常措施，必须在6月初提高国家债务上限。

So, certainly this could have huge ripple⁶ effects for the U.S. economy if the nation were to default on their debt.

如果美国债务违约，这可能会对美国经济产生巨大的连锁反应。

1 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

2 refunds   

n.归还，偿还额，退款( refund的名词复数 )v.归还，退还( refund的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Tomorrow he would return them to the store and claim refunds. 明天他要把它们退还给商店并要求退款。 来自辞典例句
• The new method means that taxpayers get refunds much faster. 这种新办法意味着纳税人可以较快地领到退还款。 来自辞典例句

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

5 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。

6 ripple   

n.涟波，涟漪，波纹，粗钢梳；vt.使...起涟漪，使起波纹； vi.呈波浪状，起伏前进

参考例句：

• The pebble made a ripple on the surface of the lake.石子在湖面上激起一个涟漪。
• The small ripple split upon the beach.小小的涟漪卷来，碎在沙滩上。