美国国家公共电台 NPR Trump Administration Plans $12 Billion In Farm Aid To Offset Tariffs

 

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

The White House is coming to the aid of farmers hurt by its own hard-line trade policies. The Trump¹ administration says today it will make an estimated $12 billion in government assistance available. That includes direct payments to growers. The announcement came from Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue. NPR's Brian Naylor joins us in the studio now. Hey there, Brian.

BRIAN NAYLOR, BYLINE²: Hi, Audie.

CORNISH: What reason did the administration give for doing this?

NAYLOR: Well, farmers, especially hog³ farmers and soybean growers in red states, have felt the brunt of the retaliatory⁴ tariffs⁵ placed on agriculture by China and other nations which the Trump administration has penalized⁶ with tariffs on their exports. China, the EU, Canada, Mexico - they've all been hit by U.S. levies⁷ on some of the products they send to the U.S., including steel and aluminum⁸. And so they've retaliated⁹, placing their own tariffs on U.S. agricultural exports and targeting farm states that have supported the president and Republican lawmakers in general. So Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said today that the aid would show that the president has the farmers' backs.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

SONNY PERDUE: The programs we're announcing today are a firm statement that other nations cannot bully¹⁰ our agricultural producers to force the United States to cave in.

CORNISH: At the same time, the president was tweeting just this morning that tariffs are great, right? We heard...

NAYLOR: Yeah.

CORNISH: ...Him in a speech talking about how this is going to really make a difference and open up markets. So what is the message being sent now by the action of providing emergency aid?

NAYLOR: Yeah, it's interesting. I mean, he seems to be saying, yeah, they're great, but they're going to cause some parts of the American economy to suffer at least for now. Here's how he put it today in Kansas City, where he was addressing the VFW Convention. He said the tariffs are bringing countries to the table.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Making tremendous progress - they're all coming. They don't want to have those tariffs put on them. They're all coming to see us. And the farmers will be the biggest beneficiary.

(CHEERING)

TRUMP: Watch. We're opening up markets. You watch what's going to happen. Just be a little patient.

NAYLOR: So just be a little patient seems to be the message. There will be some short-term pain but long-term gain.

CORNISH: Questions about the money - how will it be spent? We're talking 12 billion. Where did it come from (laughter)?

NAYLOR: Yeah.

CORNISH: And is Congress involved?

NAYLOR: Well, so the administration says, no, we don't need congressional approval because they're going to use a Depression-era program called the Commodity Credit Corporation to draw the funds from the Treasury¹¹. And as USDA officials explain, there will be three forms of aid - direct payments to some farmers, including soybean and dairy and hog producers. Some of it will be used to buy surplus crops from other farmers - fruits and nuts and some meats. And that will be given to food banks. Some of our listeners might remember the government cheese program back in the '70s. Audie, I know you don't.

CORNISH: Right (laughter).

NAYLOR: But it's that same program. And some of the money will also be used to develop new markets for export.

CORNISH: I can't imagine lawmakers don't have something to say about it, though.

NAYLOR: Yeah, so Congress doesn't have to approve it, which is probably a good thing because the response so far hasn't been very positive. The farmers are hurting because of the Trump trade policies on one hand. And on the other hand, they don't want the government bailing¹² them out. Republican Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska, who's often been a critic of the president, said the administration's trade war is cutting the legs out from under farmers, and the White House's plan is to spend $12 billion on gold crutches¹³.

Others are saying, hey, what about my state? You know, why are you singling out farmers? Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski says the tariffs are hurting her state's seafood¹⁴ industry and wonders where you draw the line. Senator Ron Johnson, a Republican from Wisconsin, told reporters it's becoming more and more like a Soviet¹⁵ type of economy here. So whether the grumbling¹⁶ goes any further remains¹⁷ to be seen.

CORNISH: That's NPR's Brian Naylor. Brian, thank you.

NAYLOR: Thanks Audie.

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 hog   

n.猪；馋嘴贪吃的人；vt.把…占为己有，独占

参考例句：

• He is greedy like a hog.他像猪一样贪婪。
• Drivers who hog the road leave no room for other cars.那些占着路面的驾驶员一点余地都不留给其他车辆。

4 retaliatory   

adj.报复的

参考例句：

• The process can take years before the WTO approves retaliatory action. 在WTO通过此行动之前，这个程序恐怕要等上一阵子了。 来自互联网
• Retaliatory tariffs on China are tantamount to taxing ourselves as a punishment. 将惩罚性关税强加于中国相当于对我们自己实施课税惩罚。 来自互联网

5 tariffs   

关税制度； 关税( tariff的名词复数 )； 关税表； （旅馆或饭店等的）收费表； 量刑标准

参考例句：

• British industry was sheltered from foreign competition by protective tariffs. 保护性关税使英国工业免受国际竞争影响。
• The new tariffs have put a stranglehold on trade. 新的关税制对开展贸易极为不利。

6 penalized   

对…予以惩罚( penalize的过去式和过去分词 )； 使处于不利地位

参考例句：

• You will be penalized for poor spelling. 你拼写不好将会受到处罚。
• Team members will be penalized for lateness. 队员迟到要受处罚。

7 levies   

（部队）征兵( levy的名词复数 )； 募捐； 被征募的军队

参考例句：

• At that time, taxes and levies were as many as the hairs on an ox. 那时，苛捐杂税多如牛毛。
• Variable levies can insulate farmers and consumers from world markets. 差价进口税可以把农民和消费者与世界市场隔离开来。

8 aluminum   

n.(aluminium)铝

参考例句：

• The aluminum sheets cannot be too much thicker than 0.04 inches.铝板厚度不能超过0.04英寸。
• During the launch phase,it would ride in a protective aluminum shell.在发射阶段，它盛在一只保护的铝壳里。

9 retaliated   

v.报复，反击( retaliate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• When he once teased her for her inexperience, she retaliated. 有一次，他讥讽她没有经验，她便反唇相讥。 来自辞典例句
• The terrorists retaliated by killing three policemen. 恐怖分子以杀死三名警察相报复。 来自辞典例句

10 bully   

n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮

参考例句：

• A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。
• The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。

11 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。

12 bailing   

（凿井时用吊桶）排水

参考例句：

• Both fountains were going furiously and both pumps bailing with might and main. 两个人的口水只管喷泉似地朝外涌，两个抽水机全力以赴往外抽水。
• The mechanical sand-bailing technology makes sand-washing operation more efficient. 介绍了机械捞砂的结构装置及工作原理，提出了现场操作注意事项。

13 crutches   

n.拐杖, 支柱 v.支撑

参考例句：

• After the accident I spent six months on crutches . 事故后我用了六个月的腋杖。
• When he broke his leg he had to walk on crutches. 他腿摔断了以后，不得不靠拐杖走路。

14 seafood   

n.海产食品，海味，海鲜

参考例句：

• There's an excellent seafood restaurant near here.离这儿不远有家非常不错的海鲜馆。
• Shrimps are a popular type of seafood.小虾是比较普遍的一种海味。

15 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

16 grumbling   

adj. 喃喃鸣不平的, 出怨言的

参考例句：

• She's always grumbling to me about how badly she's treated at work. 她总是向我抱怨她在工作中如何受亏待。
• We didn't hear any grumbling about the food. 我们没听到过对食物的抱怨。

17 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。