The Obama administration and a top Republican lawmaker agree U.S. Central Bank Chief Ben Bernanke is likely to be confirmed for another term as the nation's top monetary official.
奥巴马政府和一名资深共和党议员都认为，美联储现任主席伯南克很可能获得连任。
To some in Washington, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is the master economist whose aggressive actions and creative solutions prevented complete economic collapse in 2008, when major American banks, investment firms, insurance companies, and home mortgage giants were failing at a catastrophic pace. To others, he is the financial industry insider who facilitated reckless corporate risk-taking that placed the national and global economy in grave peril in the first place.
对于华盛顿的一些人来说，美联储主席伯南克是一位经济学大师。在美国主要银行、投资公司、保险公司以及住房抵押巨头以灾难性的速度滑向破产边缘时，伯南克以积极的行动和创新的解决方法防止了2008年经济崩盘的发生。对于其他人来说，从一开始他就是金融界中的一份子，促使公司进行过多的风险投资，而导致美国和全球经济陷入巨大危机之中。
Days before the expiration of a four-year term as Fed chief, Bernanke faces growing opposition from Democratic and Republican senators who will vote on his reconfirmation.
现在，伯南克作为美联储主席的任期还有几天就即将结束，但是他面临来自民主共和两党参议员日益增长的反对声音。这些参议员将就他能否连任进行投票。
Bernanke was originally nominated by former President George W. Bush in 2005. Last year, President Barack Obama backed Bernanke for a second term, and White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs expressed optimism his tenure will be extended. "We believe he [Bernanke] will be confirmed. There is no doubt there is anger and frustration in this country about the direction of our economy, and about what has happened with excessive risk-taking by big banks, and the American people having to lend their hard-earned money to bail them out. I think now would be a particularly bad time to send a signal to the international community and to our overall financial system by playing politics in any way with this upcoming [reconfirmation] vote," he said.
伯南克在2005年由前总统布什提名担任美联储主席。去年，奥巴马总统支持伯南克连任，而白宫首席发言人吉布斯对于伯南克继续任职表示乐观。他说:“我们相信伯南克的连任将获得批准。当然毫无疑问的，人们对我们国家经济的前进方向感到愤怒和失望。大银行进行过多风险投资，而美国人民则被迫用他们自己辛苦挣来的钱去为这些公司进行紧急援助。我认为，如果现在在投票中玩弄任何政治游戏，那将无异于在最不适宜的时候给国际社会和整个金融系统送去这种信息。”
Gibbs spoke on the "Fox News Sunday" television program.
吉布斯是在“福克斯周日新闻”电视节目中发表这番讲话的。
Last week, U.S. markets slid sharply as several prominent senators from both major political parties announced their opposition to Bernanke's reconfirmation. Among those who say they will vote against the Fed chief is Texas Republican John Cornyn, who also appeared on "Fox News Sunday". "I think the Federal Reserve would benefit from a fresh start. I am not saying that Bernanke had not done a good job once the crisis was created. I think he has probably mitigated a lot of the harm that could have happened. But I think he should have seen it coming [anticipated the financial crisis]," he said.
上个星期，美国股票市场严重下挫的同时，来自两党的几个主要参议员都宣布他们反对伯南克连任。其中一位是德克萨斯州共和党议员约翰·康宁，他也在“福克斯周日新闻”发表了他的观点。他说:“我认为一个新的开始能够使美联储受益。我并没有说在危机开始后伯南克处理不当。我认为他可能减轻了很多可能发生的危机。但是同时我认为他应当预料到金融危机的到来。”
In congressional testimony, Bernanke has placed much of the blame for the 2008 financial meltdown on lax governmental regulation of banks and other entities as authorized by Congress, rather than the monetary policy he oversaw.
在国会听证会上，伯南克把2008年金融系统垮台的大部分责任归罪于政府对于银行和其他实体的松懈监管，而非他管辖范围内的货币政策。
Will opposition to Bernanke torpedo his reconfirmation as Fed chief? On this, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell concurs with the White House. "He [Bernanke] is going to have bipartisan support in the Senate, and I would anticipate he will be confirmed," he said.
这些反对的声音会阻止伯南克连任吗? 对于这个问题，参议院少数党领袖麦康奈尔与白宫的意见相一致。他说:“他将得到来自参议院两党的支持。我预计他将得到连任。”
McConnell, who spoke on NBC's "Meet The Press" program, declined to say how he will vote on Bernanke's reconfirmation.
在美国国家广播公司的面对媒体节目上，麦康奈尔拒绝就他将如何对伯南克连任投票表态。 |