VOA常速英语2016--奥巴马呼吁国会通过TPP协定（在线收听）

奥巴马呼吁国会通过TPP协定

In what may be his final prime-time address to both houses of Congress, President BarackObama called Tuesday for swift action on the pending Trans-Pacific Partnership, framing thedeal as a way to open overseas markets to U.S. goods and level the playing field with China.

周二巴拉克·奥巴马总统向两院发表了可能是最后的演讲，他呼吁立即就悬而未决的跨太平洋伙伴关系协定（TPP）采取决议，称该协议可以为美国商品打开海外市场，使得美国与中国处于公平的竞争环境下。

“With TPP, China does not set the rules in that region; we do," Obama said in his State of theUnion address. "You want to show our strength in this new century? Approve this agreement.Give us the tools to enforce it. It's the right thing to do.”

“有了TPP，中国就不能在该地区设定规则，你希望在新世纪展示美国的力量吗？通过这个协定吧，给我们以实施该协定的工具，这样做是正确的。”

But the pending deal with 12 Pacific trading countries faces an uphill battle in Congress, wherethere is opposition from lawmakers of both parities who worry that American companies can'tcompete against Asian nations where wages are lower.

但这个与12个太平洋国家的协在国会遭到极力反对，两党的议员们都担心美国公司无法与工资较低的亚洲国家竞争。

“I, for one, have a significant number of concerns about that agreement and what it will do inmaking sure the playing field is level with the United States, our products and products thatcome in from those Asian countries,” said Representative Rob Wittman, a Virginia Republican.

维吉尼亚州共和党人、代表罗伯威特曼说：“我有对该协定有很多担心，担心它如何确保美国和美国的产品将如何与亚洲国家的产品公平竞争。”

Some of the president's strongest critics are members of his own party and labor groups whodescribe TPP as a net job killer. But U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman argues that TPPwould cut tariffs on U.S.-made goods and boost U.S. exports.

最强烈批评总统的人包括一些民主党人和劳工组织，他们称TPP将减少就业，但美国贸易代表迈克尔”·弗罗曼认为TPP将削减美国产品的关税并促进美国出口。

“Every $1 billion of exports supports 5,000 to 7,000 jobs in the U.S," he said. "Those jobs pay18 percent more on average than non-export-related jobs. So by opening markets, levelingthe playing field, we’re helping to support more good-paying jobs here in the United States,which is exactly what this is all about.”

“在美国，每出口10亿美元的商品就能带来5000到7000个就业机会，与那些与出口无关的岗位相比，这些岗位的平均薪酬要高出18%。所以只要打开市场，创造公平竞争环境，我们就能在美国创造更多高薪岗位，这正是该协定的意义所在。”

While a Pacific trade deal could indeed lead to job losses in the U.S., economists say such losseswould more than likely be offset by new jobs in other sectors. The greater obstacle may bepolitics, with some lawmakers saying the chances of a TPP deal being approved by a dividedCongress — in an election year — are less than 50 percent.

考虑到太平洋协定确实会导致美国就业机会的流失，经济学家称此类损失可以被其它领域的新就业所弥补，最大的障碍可能是政治方面，一些议员称TPP协定在选举年得到存在分歧的国会通过的几率不到50%。