密歇根新闻广播 延长待在家中时长的命令

 

Governor Gretchen Whitmer has signed a new executive order to deal with the COVID-19 crisis. The emergency has been extended now to May 15 and it requires people to stay at home as much as possible.

Her new order also lifts some restrictions¹ on businesses and activities.

But her action Friday is not enough for Republican critics. GOP leaders called the Legislature back to the Capitol as political tensions ratcheted up.

Governor Whitmer announced her plans from the state’s emergency operations center. She says she understands hardships came with her stay-at-home order. But she says, by and large, people are complying.

“It’s doing the right thing and it’s paying off.”

The new order also now requires people to wear face masks when they venture into public places such as grocery stores. That’s on top of social distancing. She says the number of confirmed new cases appears to be headed in the right direction, but Michigan still has a lot of cases and deaths have topped 3,000 people now.

“We know that if we do it too fast, a second wave is likely and would be even more devastating³ than the moment that we are in.”

University of Michigan public health professor David Hutton researches infectious diseases. He’s OK with re-opening some businesses, but says it needs to be done cautiously. He says it’s probably smart for the governor to retain her emergency powers for the duration of the crisis.

“The state really needs to have a lot of testing infrastructure⁴ and contact tracing infrastructure in place and I don’t think we’re there yet, and it’s not clear that we’ll be there by the end of the month," he said. "So, I think extending that seems reasonable.

If the ramp-up is not handled well, there could also be dire² economic consequences, says Paul Isley. He’s an economist⁵ and business professor at Grand Valley State University. He says this is a good moment to start testing back-to-work plans – and it’s not too late for Michigan to emerge from the COVID-induced recession.

"Bringing some people back to work will take off some of the pressure on the state budget. It will take off some of the pressure on unemployment benefits. And we will start to experiment with how far we can actually re-open the economy and still avoid a resurgence⁶ of the virus in the state.”

But Isley says a new wave of infections would be a resurgent disaster for businesses that have have burned through their cash reserves. He says that could lead to a new round of layoffs⁷ and the cascading⁸ effects of that on Michigan’s economy.

The Michigan Constitution gives governors broad authority to act during a crisis to protect life and property. But, at some point, a governor has to go to the Legislature to renew or extend emergency orders.

Republicans in the Legislature say the governor’s actions have been too onerous⁹ on businesses and workers. House Speaker Lee Chatfield says business owners are suffering, and they’re feeling ignored as the governor continues to claim emergency authority.

“Our main focus right now is ensuring that we have a collaborative process moving forward with this administration and ensure that they’re handling this pandemic the right way so that we can be the voice for the people as the Legislature was intended to be.”

Republicans who lead the House and the Senate convened¹⁰ a rare Friday session in an effort to assert the Legislature’s authority. Republicans created a special committee with subpoena¹¹ power to examine the governor’s response to the COVID-19 crisis. Lawmakers also adopted bills to require the governor to return to the Legislature more often to seek an extension of emergency powers.

Whitmer says those bills are a distraction¹² from addressing the crisis and will be vetoed once they reach her desk.

1 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

2 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

3 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

4 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。

5 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

6 resurgence   

n.再起，复活，再现

参考例句：

• A resurgence of his grief swept over Nim.悲痛又涌上了尼姆的心头。
• Police say drugs traffickers are behind the resurgence of violence.警方说毒贩是暴力活动重新抬头的罪魁祸首。

7 layoffs   

临时解雇( layoff的名词复数 )； 停工，停止活动

参考例句：

• Textile companies announced 2000 fresh layoffs last week. 各纺织公司上周宣布再次裁员两千人。
• Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. 当公司突然宣布裁员时，股票价格便大跌

8 cascading   

流注( cascade的现在分词 )； 大量落下； 大量垂悬； 梯流

参考例句：

• First of all, cascading menus are to be avoided at all costs. 首先，无论如何都要避免使用级联菜单。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Her sounds began cascading gently. 他的声音开始缓缓地低落下来。

9 onerous   

adj.繁重的

参考例句：

• My household duties were not particularly onerous.我的家务活并不繁重。
• This obligation sometimes proves onerous.这一义务有时被证明是艰巨的。

10 convened   

召开( convene的过去式 )； 召集； （为正式会议而）聚集； 集合

参考例句：

• The chairman convened the committee to put the issue to a vote. 主席召集委员们开会对这个问题进行表决。
• The governor convened his troops to put down the revolt. 总督召集他的部队去镇压叛乱。

11 subpoena   

n.（法律）传票；v.传讯

参考例句：

• He was brought up to court with a subpoena.他接到传讯，来到法庭上。
• Select committees have the power to subpoena witnesses.特别委员会有权传唤证人。

12 distraction   

n.精神涣散，精神不集中，消遣，娱乐

参考例句：

• Total concentration is required with no distractions.要全神贯注，不能有丝毫分神。
• Their national distraction is going to the disco.他们的全民消遣就是去蹦迪。