VOA双语新闻 Bush Launches Fundraising Drive（在线收听）

President Bush has launched a nationwide fundraising effort to encourage private contributions for relief groups helping those affected by the devastating earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean.

布什总统正式启动了一项全国性的筹款活动，鼓励私人捐献者向救援组织提供捐助。这些救援组织目前正在帮助受印度洋灾难性海啸影响的人。

President Bush says the new fundraising effort will be led by two former presidents, his father, George Herbert Walker Bush, and the last president from the Democratic Party, Bill Clinton.

布什总统表示，这项新的筹款工作将由两位前总统领导。其中一位是他的父亲乔治·布什，另一位是民主党的上届总统比尔·克林顿。

Accompanied by the two men in the White House Roosevelt Room, Mr. Bush said he is grateful to the former presidents for taking on such an important responsibility.

在两位前总统的陪同下，布什在白宫罗斯福厅表示，他对两位前总统承担如此重任深表感谢。

"In the coming days, President Clinton and Bush will ask Americans to donate directly to reliable charities already providing help to tsunami victims," the president said. "Many of these organizations have dispatched experts to the disaster area and they have an in-depth understanding of the resources required to meet the needs on the ground."

布什说：“未来几天内，克林顿总统和布什总统将请求美国人民直接捐助那些已经为海啸受害者提供帮助的可靠慈善机构。许多上述机构向受灾地区派出了专门人员，这些机构深刻了解那里所需资源的状况。”

President Bush says Americans are already showing their generosity through contributions to aid groups. He hopes this new effort targeting both individuals and corporations will further complement official U.S. assistance.

布什总统说，美国人民通过向援助组织提供各种捐助而表现自己的慷慨精神。布什希望，目前这项针对个人以及公司的新努力将能进一步补充美国的官方援助。

"From our own experiences, we know that nothing can take away the grief of those affected by tragedy," he said. "We also know that Americans have a history of rising to meet great humanitarian challenges and of providing hope to suffering peoples. As men and women across the devastated region begin to rebuild, we offer our sustained compassion and our generosity and our assurance that America will be there to help."

布什说：“亲身经历告诉我们，没有任何东西能够消除惨剧受害者的悲痛。我们还知道，美国人民具有挺身而出、迎接巨大人道挑战的历史，具有向苦难的人民提供希望的历史。在整个受灾地区的男女民众开始重建之际，我们继续向他们表示爱心和慷慨。我们保证，美国将会出现在他们那里进行帮助。”

President Bush last week promised $350 million in U.S. government assistance for affected countries. That is ten times the $35 million that Washington initially pledged.

布什总统上星期已经向有关的受灾国承诺了3亿5千万美元的美国政府援助。目前这个数字是华盛顿3千5百万美元最初承诺数字的十倍。

That first amount drew some criticism, considering the size and wealth of the United States when compared to other countries' contributions. There was also some criticism of the president himself for not cutting short his Texas vacation and returning to Washington.

考虑到美国的规模和财富，特别是同其它国家的捐献相比，美国的最初承诺受到了一些批评。另外，还出现了对布什总统本人的某些批评，批评他没有缩短在德克萨斯的假期，及时返回华盛顿。

Now back at the White House, President Bush is starting the first week of the year with a big push on tsunami relief efforts. He has dispatched a U.S. delegation to the region led by Secretary of State Colin Powell and the president's brother, Florida Governor Jeb Bush.

现在，布什已经回到白宫，并以大力推动海啸灾难救援开始了今年第一个星期的工作。布什还派遣了一个由国务卿鲍威尔以及他弟弟、佛罗里达州州长杰布·布什率领的美国代表团前往受灾地区。

After launching the new fundraising effort, President Bush and former presidents Bush and Clinton visited the embassies of India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand to sign condolence books for those killed.

新的筹款活动正式启动后，布什总统以及前总统布什和克林顿前往印度、斯里兰卡和泰国驻华盛顿的大使馆，在海啸死难者吊唁簿上签字。

In an interview with NBC television, President Clinton says the Sri Lankan ambassador told them of an airstrip covered in crates where one of the challenges now is distributing aid that has already arrived. President Clinton says that is why cash contributions are often more useful.

在接受美国全国广播公司采访时，前总统克林顿说斯里兰卡大使告诉他们一条飞机跑道中已经摆满了箱子，现在在那里一件比较难办的事是分配已经运来的救援物质。他说这就是为什么现金捐款通常更为有用了。

"If you give money, even if it is a small amount of money, it will aggregate up," the former president said. "They will send it to the aid agencies on the ground and then they will spend it right there for what is most needed. And you won't have to worry about the cost and the time delay of physically getting other things overseas."

前总统克林顿说，"如果你捐了钱，哪怕只有很少的钱，捐款总额都会增加。这些捐款将被送往当地援助机构，然后他们会把这些捐款用在最需要帮助的地方。而且你可以不必担心运往海外其它救援物资的成本和时间延误。"

Both former presidents say they are in this fundraising effort for the long haul and hope Americans realize that any amount of assistance, no matter how small, will help someone somewhere.

两位前总统均表示他们会一直为筹款而努力工作，并且希望美国国民意识到任何数额的捐助，无论多少都会给灾区的人民很大的帮助。