VOA常速英语2021--美国卫生部长称拜登的疫苗强制令是合理的（在线收听）

U.S. weather authorities warned on Sunday that Tropical Storm Nicholas will bring heavy rain and potential flash flooding to parts of the U.S. Gulf Coast.

美国气象部门周日警告称，热带风暴尼古拉斯将给美国墨西哥湾部分地区带来暴雨，并可能引发山洪暴发。

Some of the heaviest rain from the storm is expected to fall in areas of Louisiana recently devastated by Hurricane Ida.

风暴带来的一些最强降雨预计将落在最近被飓风艾达摧毁的路易斯安那州地区。

Any heavy rain or flash flooding will further impede efforts to rebuild homes and infrastructure in that area.

任何暴雨或洪水都将进一步阻碍该地区重建房屋和基础设施的工作。

Coastal areas in Texas and Louisiana are expected to see 12 to 25 centimeters of rainfall in the next few days, the National Hurricane Center said.

美国国家飓风中心称，预计未来几天德克萨斯州和路易斯安那州沿海地区的降雨量将达到12至25厘米。

The Center also issued hurricane watches and storm surge warnings for parts of the Texas and Louisiana coast.

该中心还发布了德克萨斯州和路易斯安那州海岸部分地区的飓风监测和风暴潮警告。

Louisiana Public Service Commission says a little over six percent of the homes in Louisiana are still without power two weeks after Hurricane Ida.

路易斯安那州公共服务委员会表示，飓风艾达过去两周后，路易斯安那州仍有6%多一点的家庭处于断电状态。

U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on Sunday defended President Joe Biden's new directives requiring millions of workers to get vaccinated against the coronavirus under the possible threat of losing their jobs although there is widespread opposition from Republican state governors.

美国卫生部长维韦克·莫西周日为乔·拜登总统的新指令进行了辩护，该指令要求数百万工作者在可能失去工作的威胁下接种冠状病毒疫苗，尽管共和党州长普遍反对。

Murthy told ABC's "This Week" that the step is not unusual, but instead, is an appropriate response.

莫西在接受美国广播公司“本周”节目采访时表示，这一举措并非不同寻常，而是一种恰当的反应。

With about 150,000 new Delta variant coronavirus cases and 1,500 more deaths being recorded daily in the United States, Biden last week directed businesses with more than 100 employees to mandate vaccinations for their workers.

随着美国每天新增约15万例德尔塔变种感染病例和1500多例死亡病例，拜登上周指示拥有超过100名员工的企业强制员工接种疫苗。

Employees who refused to get vaccinated would undergo weekly testing for COVID-19.

拒绝接种疫苗的员工将每周接受新冠检测。

The president also ordered about two and a half million federal workers employed by the national government to get the shot if they haven't already.

总统还命令约250万受雇于国家政府的联邦工作人员接种疫苗，如果他们还没有接种的话。

He ended a previous option for government employees to opt out of a vaccination in favor of weekly tests.

他终止了之前政府雇员可以选择不接种疫苗，而选择接受每周检测的做法。

Republican Governor Pete Ricketts of Nebraska told the "Fox News Sunday" that the president's orders are, in his words, "an egregious overreach" by the national government.

内布拉斯加州共和党州长皮特·里基茨在“福克斯周日新闻”中表示，用他的话来说，总统的命令是国家政府“过分的越权行为”。

He said, "You shouldn't have to make a choice between keeping your job or getting a jab in the arm. There's just a lot of people who don't know what to trust right now."

他说：“你不应该在保住饭碗和胳膊挨针之间做出选择。现在有很多人不知道该相信什么。”