VOA慢速英语2018 特朗普政府欲将接收难民人数限制至历史最低水平

Trump¹ Administration Proposes Limiting Refugees to Record Low

The government of U.S. President Donald Trump announced this week that it plans to limit the number of refugee arrivals in the U.S. to a record low number. But refugee activists² and lawmakers say Congress still has time to change the president’s mind.

美国特朗普总统这届政府本周宣布，其计划将抵达美国的难民数量降至新低。但多位难民活动家和律师表示，国会还来得及改变总统的心意。

On Monday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke³ to reporters about the plan. He claimed that refugees can be a security threat to the United States. In answer, he said, the executive branch is proposing a limit of “up to 30,000 refugees” in the fiscal⁴ year that begins October 1. If approved, the number would be the lowest since the early 1980s.

周一，国务卿迈克 蓬佩奥(Mike Pompeo)在接受记者采访时说道了美国政府的这项计划。他表示，难民对美国而言是一种安全威胁。他表示，为了应对难民构成的安全威胁，美国政府提出将2018财年的难民总数限额降至3万，并将于10月开始执行。一旦该计划得到批准，那么美国的难民总数将达到上世纪80年代以来的史上新低。

Before the president makes the final decision, however, lawmakers in Congress must be able to give their advice.

不过，在总统拍板儿之前，国会议员有机会发表自己的建议。

Jen Smyers is with the Church World Service, one of the leading refugee resettlement groups in the United States. She says government officials often suggest a number before the final decision is made. And, she says, Congress has succeeded before in increasing the planned number of refugee arrivals.

珍(Jen Smyers)来自基督教世界救济会，该组织是美国知名难民安置组织之一。珍表示，政府官员经常在决定敲定之前提出许多建议。珍还说，之前国会也曾成功增加过难民抵达美国的限额数量。

But, she added on a telephone call with reporters, “the timeline is tight.” The final decision will be made by the end of this month.

不过，珍在接受记者的电话采访时也补充道，时间很紧迫。最终决定在本月底之前就要敲定了。

Trump has already cut refugee numbers

During Trump's first year in office, his government set the limit at 45,000 refugees. However, with less than two weeks remaining in the fiscal year, less than half of that amount has been reached.

特朗普任职第一年期间，其政府将难民限额设定为4.5万人。不过，在离财年结束不到2周的时候，限额的一半都没达到。

Philemon Dushimire is a refugee from Burundi who now lives in Maine. There, he is a community organizer among the Burundi immigrant and refugee community. He told VOA that the decrease in the refugee limit may affect how the United States is viewed abroad.

菲勒蒙(Philemon Dushimire)是布隆迪的难民，现在生活在缅因州。在缅因州，菲勒蒙是布隆迪移民和难民社群的组织者。他在接受美国之音采访时表示，难民限额数量的下降可能会影响到海外对美国的看法。

"The risk now [is that] America will be seen as a country which doesn’t care about human rights violations⁵ in some places of the world. Which doesn’t care about the safety of people in danger,” he said.

现在的风险在于外界会把美国看成不在乎某些地方是否践踏人权的国家，不关心他人是否置身于危险之中的国家，他这样说道。

Some lawmakers from both major parties have criticized the proposed refugee limit.

国共两党的一些议员谴责了这次限额下降的提案。

Democratic Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts accused the Trump government of trying to isolate⁶ America and not caring about people suffering around the world.

民主党参议员爱德华 马基(Ed Markey)来自马萨诸塞州，他谴责特朗普政府试图把美国孤立起来，不关心世界其他地方人的疾苦。

Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Republican from the Miami area, also answered on social media. She is a political refugee herself.

雷提南(Ileana Ros-Lehtinen)是迈阿密的共和党议员，她也在社交媒体上对此事做出了响应。她本人是一名政治难民。

“With crises in every region of the world, U.S. should be doing more, not less, to be a global leader in refugee protection,” she tweeted shortly after Pompeo’s announcement on Monday.

世界上的每个地区都有危机出现，美国应该做更多贡献才对，应该成为保护难民的全球领袖才对，在周一蓬佩奥宣布新提案后，雷提南发表了上述推文。

Words in This Story

appalled⁷ - adj. to feel fear, shock, or disgust?

circumstance - n. a condition or fact that affects a situation?

fiscal - adj. of or relating to money and especially to the money a government, business, or organization earns, spends, and owes?

isolate - v. to put or keep (someone or something) in a place or situation that is separate from others?

resettle - v. to begin to live in a new area after leaving an old one?

slash⁸ - v. to make a long cut in (something) with a knife or other sharp weapon?

stakeholder - n. a person or business that has invested money in something (such as a company)

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 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

5 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

6 isolate   

vt.使孤立，隔离

参考例句：

• Do not isolate yourself from others.不要把自己孤立起来。
• We should never isolate ourselves from the masses.我们永远不能脱离群众。

7 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 slash   

vi.大幅度削减；vt.猛砍，尖锐抨击，大幅减少；n.猛砍，斜线，长切口，衣衩

参考例句：

• The shop plans to slash fur prices after Spring Festival.该店计划在春节之后把皮货降价。
• Don't slash your horse in that cruel way.不要那样残忍地鞭打你的马。