经济学人:新国会 上面施工下面堵塞

 　　The new Congress

　　新国会

　　Construction above, obstruction¹ below

　　上面施工，下面堵塞

　　The 114th Congress may be more productive than its predecessor²—just

　　第114届国会或许比上一届更多产

　　VIEWED from a distance, the scaffolding on the Capitol's dome³ makes the building seem perpetually out of focus. The intentions of the congressmen sitting underneath⁴ it, who took their seats for the 114th Congress for the first time on January 6th, are similarly fuzzy. They may continue where the last Congress, a notably⁵ unproductive one, left off. Or they may work with the president to pass some limited legislation. While they make up their minds, a giant doughnut will be suspended above their heads to let workmen repair the 1,000 cracks that become apparent when the building is seen from up close.

　　远远望去，国会大厦圆屋顶的脚手架让这个建筑物看起来要永远地离开人们的视线。坐在国会大厦里面的议员，于1月6日首次入职成为114届国会成员，却犯一样的糊涂。他们或将接手上一届国会—出了名的无作为国会—的烂摊子。抑或他们与总统携手共同通过一些有限的立法。尽管议员们下定决心，但一个巨大的“甜甜圈”将悬浮在其头顶上空：从近距离看，国会大厦屋顶有1000条裂缝，越来越明显；议员们得雇佣工人去修复这些裂缝。

　　新国会.jpg

　　This giant floating bun ought to serve as a warning. In the previous Congress the centre too often went missing; to be more productive, this one will have to find it.Those who think this will happen argue that Congress works best when it is wholly controlled by one party, as the new one is. When one side holds just one chamber⁶ of Congress and the presidency⁷, as was the case for the Democrats⁸ between 2010 and the end of 2013, the other lot has plenty of power—in the sense that it can stop things happening—but not much incentive⁹ to co-operate in governing. It is harder for a party to act as a protest movement when it is in charge of the legislature. When Bill Clinton found himself faced by a Congress wholly controlled by Republicans, he signed one bill reforming the welfare system and another that cut taxes. When George W. Bush faced a Democratic Congress, he signed a stimulus¹⁰ bill that gave the economy a needed boost in the early part of the financial crisis.

　　这个巨大的悬浮的“小圆面包”应该是一个警告。在上一届国会中，国会中心常常“闹失踪”；想要更多产，那么这一届国会必须要找到中心。坚信这一切即将成为现实的人争辩道，国会只有在完全被一党控制时才能有优异表现，如同这个新国会一样。和2010年-2013年底情况相同，一党仅仅拥有国会一院的控制权以及总统任职，而其他的则掌握了大权；某种意义而言，这样的格局可以规避一些情况，但在协同治理上却失去了许多动力。握有立法机关的控制权，要想掀起反抗运动，对于一个政党来说无疑是难上加难。比尔·克林顿意识到自己面对一个全权被共和党控制的国会，他签署了一项改革福利制度的法案以及另一项关于削减税收的法案。小乔治面对民主党控权的国会，他签署了一项刺激法案，该法案在经融危机爆发的早起及时地推动了经济。

　　A further cause for optimism is that the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, is in a stronger position. Mr Boehner was re-elected to the post on January 6th, celebrating with a leathery kiss on the unwilling¹¹ cheek of Nancy Pelosi, the minority leader (see picture, which went viral). Before the vote, some of his colleagues had talked about a coup¹². In the event 25 Republicans voted against him. The sight of Louie Gohmert, one of Mr Boehner's more obstreperous¹³ foes¹⁴, receiving three out of an available 241 votes must have been particularly enjoyable. Since becoming Speaker in 2011, Mr Boehner has often been forced to do things he himself opposed in order to keep his members onside and retain his job. Now that Republicans have their biggest majority in the House since 1946, he can afford to be more robust¹⁵.

　　乐观的另一个原因源于白宫发言人约翰·博纳，他处在一个更有力的地位。博纳先生是在1月6日重选中获胜，尽管少数党领袖南希·佩洛西极不情愿，但他还是给了她一个坚韧如皮革般的亲吻，来庆祝自己的任职（见图，该图此后被疯传）。投票前，他的一些同事曾谈道一场政变。该事件中，25名共和党议员曾投票反对他。见到路易·戈摩特，是一件过瘾的事；因为戈摩特在241票中只得了三票。自2011年成为发言人以来，博纳先生常常被迫做他不赞同的事，以此来保证他的成员不越位，也只有这样才能保住饭碗。自1946年以来共和党在白宫中占多数，既然如此，他就有资本表现得更加粗鲁。

　　Yet for all this, Republicans and the president do not agree on much. Mitch McConnell, the majority leader in the Senate, has said there may be room to deal on trade, infrastructure¹⁶ and tax reform. Of these three, trade looks the most promising¹⁷, because granting the president's administration fast-track authority to do deals that cannot be unpicked by Congress later would not cost any money.

　　然而目前为止，共和党与总统之间并没有达成多少共识。参议院多数派领袖米奇·麦康恩曾说，贸易、基础设施以及税改的商议仍有余地。其中，贸易协商最有希望，因为授予总统外贸谈判特权，来协商，之后被国会挑选出来，而且零花费。

　　The other two supposed areas of agreement will founder¹⁸ on a familiar argument about tax. The president would like to raise revenue to pay for infrastructure improvements, perhaps by using a windfall from the foreign profits of American firms repatriated¹⁹ after a reform to corporate²⁰ taxes. Republicans would prefer to pay for this through spending cuts elsewhere. Both sides are open to a deal that would lower the combined federal and state taxes on companies—at 39%, the highest rate in the developed world—while closing some loopholes. But whereas the president would continue to tax companies on their worldwide profits, Republicans favour a sytem that taxes profits based on where they are made. On both these issues agreement that something should be done is not enough to ensure that it is.

　　这项协议中另外两个部分将基于一项与税收有关的类似申诉。在公司税收改革后，美国公司将海外利润寄回国内，总统想通过收获其中的意外财产，来提高基础设施提升的工资。共和党人更愿意通过削减其他地方的费用来支付这笔费用。双方都愿接受这项协议，该协议将降低联邦和州对公司的组合税收—约39%，成为发达国家的最高比例—尽管关闭一些漏洞。然而，鉴于总统将继续向公司全球利润课税，共和党人偏爱这个系统—税收利润基于它们产生的地方。在这两个问题上，本该达成的协议要确保能发挥作用，却远远不够。

　　If the list of things where co-operation is possible is short and comes with many disclaimers, the opportunities for confrontation²¹ are numerous. Both Mr McConnell and Mr Boehner are under pressure from their members to find ways to hamper²² the implementation²³ of the Affordable²⁴ Care Act and the president's executive action on immigration. They will try to do so by attaching riders to bills that the president would otherwise wish to sign, testing how much he is willing to lose in order to preserve two of the things that he sees as big achievements. This is likely to start in the coming week, when the Senate votes to approve the construction of Keystone XL, a pipeline²⁶ that would take oil from Canada's tar²⁵ sands to refineries²⁷ on the Gulf²⁸ coast. The White House has said that the president will veto the bill.The pipeline is a good illustration of why hoping for too much from this Congress will bring disappointment. Keystone XL, if built, may contribute to a slight increase in CO{-2} emissions²⁹, though its overall impact will be hard to discern. Nor will it provide much economic benefit: the pipeline is unlikely to create a large number of jobs, and with oil at $50 a barrel it is probably not viable³⁰ economically. Yet Democrats often act as if Keystone XL were the most important environmental threat facing America, whereas Republicans offer it as a fix for any number of ailments³¹, from slow growth to unemployment. This suggests that the argument is not really about whether to build a new pipeline, but about two conflicting views of American progress and about election adverts³² to be aired in future cycles.

　　在合作有望成功的地方，若清单不足，且出现放弃者，那么对峙的可能性将无限放大。麦凯恩先生和博纳先生顶着各自成员施加的压力，想方设法，阻止《平价医疗法案》的实施以及总统有关移民问题的执行力。他们将竭尽全力，通过给法案—总统另行签署—附上附文，达成此目标。同时，检验总统在保存这两样他认为最重要的成就时愿意付出多少。下周众议院投票通过关于“基石输油管计划”（把石油从加拿大焦油砂运送到墨西哥湾岸区炼油厂的输油管）的建设，届时他们可能开始行动。白宫说，总统将会否决这项法案。输油管一事，成为解答为何对这个新国会期待越高失望越大的最佳解释。“基石输油管计划”，一旦建成，可能会略微增加二氧化碳排放量，尽管其整体效果还有待考究。该计划也不会带来太多经济利润：输油管不大可能创造大量工作岗位；而且石油每桶价格在50美元，在经济上也许不太可行。然而，民主党人常常却将“基石输油管计划”看成是对美国面临的环境问题的最大威胁；共和党，恰恰相反则认为这是治理任何“小病”的“一剂良药”，无论是经济低速增长还是就业问题。这暗示，争辩不是为了讨论是否要建成新的输油管，而是两种不同观点—关于美国发展与选举广告在未来周期宣言的内容—争锋相对。

　　One of the first things the House will do will be to pass the Hire More Heroes bill. Since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, Republicans have denounced the law's impact on small businesses, many of which must provide health insurance for their staff once they employ 50 people for 30 hours a week or more. The Hire More Heroes bill would change the law so that a company with 49 staff could hire as many military veterans as it wanted without breaching³³ the threshold. This may be a good idea, but to claim it will transform the fortunes of either America's small businesses or the employment prospects³⁴ of ex-servicemen is nonsense on stilts³⁵.

　　白宫必做事情之一，即通过《雇佣更过英雄》法案。自从推出《平价医疗法案》，共和党人公然抨击法律对小企业的影响，大部分是要求小企业只要员工人数满50人以上、工作时间超过一周30小时以上（包括30小时），就必须为员工提供健康保险。《雇佣更多英雄》法案将改变这项法律，如此一来，公司规模有49位员工，雇佣多少退伍军人都可以，也不会破坏门槛。这看起来是一个好办法，但其将转移美国小企业或者退伍军人的财富，毫无意义、夸张做作。

　　As well as passing laws, the Senate will be called on to confirm the president's nominations³⁶ for two important offices: secretary of defence and attorney-general. Both will produce plenty of theatre. The attorney-general's hearing will be dominated by questions from Republican senators on how immigration law will be enforced, now that the president has unilaterally suspended parts of it. The hearings for secretary of defence will provide an opportunity for Republican presidential hopefuls in the Senate to denounce the administration's foreign policy as being both too adventurous³⁷ and too passive.

　　除了通过法案，参议院将义不容辞向总统提名证实两个重要的职位：国防部长以及财务部长。这两个职位将产生大量剧院既然总统单方面暂停了财务部长听证会的部分内容，那么听证会将由共和党议员发问，问题涉及移民法的执行。国防部长的听证会将为共和党在参议院中最有希望的总统候选人提供机会，来否决政府的外交政策（太冒进、太被动）。

　　By the autumn of 2016, when work on the Capitol's dome is due to be completed, the 114th Congress will have run its course, the country will be in the throes of a presidential election and freshmen³⁸ congressmen will find themselves accused of having become Washington insiders. This Congress will be less destructive than its predecessor, which shut down the government and flirted³⁹ with a sovereign default. But at the moment the workmen scurrying⁴⁰ around the roof look slightly more likely to leave behind something of lasting⁴¹ value than the politicians considering their legacies⁴² 200 feet below.

　　到2016年秋，届时国会大厦的屋顶将完工，第114届国会将按常规发展，美国将陷入总统之争，年轻的国会议员将发觉自己依然被控诉为华盛顿内部人。如此一来，与上一届国会(经历政府停摆、轻视债务危机)相比，国会破坏力下降。然而，到那个时候，围着屋顶转的工人，看起来更有可能丢下具有永恒价值的东西，而政客们则考虑藏于200英尺下的遗产。

1 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。

2 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

3 dome   

n.圆屋顶，拱顶

参考例句：

• The dome was supported by white marble columns.圆顶由白色大理石柱支撑着。
• They formed the dome with the tree's branches.他们用树枝搭成圆屋顶。

4 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。

5 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

6 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

7 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

8 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》

9 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。

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。

11 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

12 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

13 obstreperous   

adj.喧闹的，不守秩序的

参考例句：

• He becomes obstreperous when he's had a few drinks.他喝了些酒就爱撒酒疯。
• You know I have no intention of being awkward and obstreperous.你知道我无意存心作对。

14 foes   

敌人，仇敌( foe的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They steadily pushed their foes before them. 他们不停地追击敌人。
• She had fought many battles, vanquished many foes. 她身经百战，挫败过很多对手。

15 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

16 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

17 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

18 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

19 repatriated   

v.把（某人）遣送回国，遣返( repatriate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The refugees were forcibly repatriated. 难民被强制遣送回国。
• Ancient artworks were repatriated from the US to Greece. 古代艺术品从美国遣送回希腊。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

21 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

22 hamper   

vt.妨碍，束缚，限制；n.(有盖的)大篮子

参考例句：

• There are some apples in a picnic hamper.在野餐用的大篮子里有许多苹果。
• The emergence of such problems seriously hamper the development of enterprises.这些问题的出现严重阻碍了企业的发展。

23 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

24 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

25 tar   

n.柏油，焦油；vt.涂或浇柏油/焦油于

参考例句：

• The roof was covered with tar.屋顶涂抹了一层沥青。
• We use tar to make roads.我们用沥青铺路。

26 pipeline   

n.管道，管线

参考例句：

• The pipeline supplies Jordan with 15 per cent of its crude oil.该管道供给约旦15%的原油。
• A single pipeline serves all the houses with water.一条单管路给所有的房子供水。

27 refineries   

精炼厂( refinery的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The efforts on closedown and suspension of small sugar refineries, small saccharin refineries and small paper mills are also being carried out in steps. 关停小糖厂、小糖精厂、小造纸厂的工作也已逐步展开。
• Hence the sitting of refineries is at a distance from population centres. 所以，炼油厂的厂址总在远离人口集中的地方。

28 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

29 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

30 viable   

adj.可行的，切实可行的，能活下去的

参考例句：

• The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
• The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。

31 ailments   

疾病（尤指慢性病），不适( ailment的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His ailments include a mild heart attack and arthritis. 他患有轻度心脏病和关节炎。
• He hospitalizes patients for minor ailments. 他把只有小病的患者也送进医院。

32 adverts   

advertisements 广告，做广告

参考例句：

• the adverts on television 电视广告
• The adverts are not very informative. 这些广告并没有包含太多有用信息。

33 breaching   

攻破( breach的过去式 )； 破坏，违反

参考例句：

• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。
• Third, an agency can abuse its discretion by breaching certain principles of judge-made law. 第三，行政机关会因违反某些法官制定的法律原则而构成滥用自由裁量权。

34 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

35 stilts   

n.（支撑建筑物高出地面或水面的）桩子，支柱( stilt的名词复数 )；高跷

参考例句：

• a circus performer on stilts 马戏团里踩高跷的演员
• The bamboo huts here are all built on stilts. 这里的竹楼都是架空的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

36 nominations   

n.提名，任命( nomination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nominations are invited for the post of party chairman. 为党主席职位征集候选人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Much coverage surrounded his abortive bids for the 1960,1964, and 1968 Republican Presidential nominations. 许多消息报道都围绕着1960年、1964年和1968年他为争取提名为共和党总统候选人所做努力的失败。 来自辞典例句

37 adventurous   

adj.爱冒险的；惊心动魄的，惊险的，刺激的　

参考例句：

• I was filled with envy at their adventurous lifestyle.我很羨慕他们敢于冒险的生活方式。
• He was predestined to lead an adventurous life.他注定要过冒险的生活。

38 freshmen   

n.（中学或大学的）一年级学生( freshman的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We are freshmen and they are sophomores. 我们是一年级学生，他们是二年级学生。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• University freshmen get lots of razzing, but they like the initiation. 大一新生受各种嘲弄，但是他们对这种入门经验甘之如饴。 来自辞典例句

39 flirted   

v.调情，打情骂俏( flirt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She flirted her fan. 她急速挥动着扇子。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• During his four months in Egypt he flirted with religious emotions. 在埃及逗留的这四个月期间，他又玩弄起宗教情绪来了。 来自辞典例句

40 scurrying   

v.急匆匆地走( scurry的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• We could hear the mice scurrying about in the walls. 我们能听见老鼠在墙里乱跑。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• We were scurrying about until the last minute before the party. 聚会开始前我们一直不停地忙忙碌碌。 来自辞典例句

41 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

42 legacies   

n.遗产( legacy的名词复数 )；遗留之物；遗留问题；后遗症

参考例句：

• Books are the legacies that a great genius leaves to mankind. 书是伟大的天才留给人类的精神财富。 来自辞典例句
• General legacies are subject to the same principles as demonstrative legacies. 一般的遗赠要与指定数目的遗赠遵循同样的原则。 来自辞典例句