VOA常速英语2016--奥巴马呼吁国会通过TPP协定

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 pending¹ Trans-Pacific Partnership², 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 opposition³ from lawmakers of both parities⁴ 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 labor⁵ groups whodescribe TPP as a net job killer⁶. But U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman argues that TPPwould cut tariffs⁷ 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 helping⁸ 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., economists⁹ say such losseswould more than likely be offset¹⁰ by new jobs in other sectors¹¹. 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%。

1 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

2 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

3 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

4 parities   

同等( parity的名词复数 )； 相等； 对等； 奇偶校验

参考例句：

• A system where no official parities for currencies are declared or maintained. 指一种官方不公开汇率目标的汇率制度。
• In 2000 developing countries accounted for 37% of world output (at purchasing power parities). 2000年时，发展中国家只占全世界经济产出的37%（以消费力平价计算）。

5 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

6 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

7 tariffs   

关税制度； 关税( tariff的名词复数 )； 关税表； （旅馆或饭店等的）收费表； 量刑标准

参考例句：

• British industry was sheltered from foreign competition by protective tariffs. 保护性关税使英国工业免受国际竞争影响。
• The new tariffs have put a stranglehold on trade. 新的关税制对开展贸易极为不利。

8 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

9 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 offset   

n.分支，补偿；v.抵消，补偿

参考例句：

• Their wage increases would be offset by higher prices.他们增加的工资会被物价上涨所抵消。
• He put up his prices to offset the increased cost of materials.他提高了售价以补偿材料成本的增加。

11 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》