VOA标准英语2010年-US Economy Grows Two Percent in Third

The US economy is growing. That's the good news. The bad news is that economic growth remains¹ sluggish². The US Commerce Department says GDP (Gross Domestic Product), the broadest measure of the US economy, grew 2 percent, at an annual rate, between July and September - a slight increase from the previous quarter. The White House says the government report is more evidence that the economy has weathered the worst downturn since the 1930's. But the numbers are of little help for Democrats³ who face steep losses in next week's mid-term elections.

Consumers helped boost growth in the third quarter - spending at the fastest rate since the end of 2006 before the recession hit. As a result, the US economy grew slightly faster than the previous quarter - but not enough to fuel significant job growth.

Speaking at a steel factory in Maryland, President Barack Obama said his policies are moving the economy in the right direction. "But as we continue to dig out from the worst recession in 80 years our mission is to accelerate that recovery and encourage more rapid growth so business like this one can continue to prosper⁴ and get millions of Americans who are still looking for jobs back to work," he said.

Nearly 15 million Americans are unemployed⁵. And with frustration⁶ growing among voters, polls show that Republicans are likely to take control of the House of Representatives, severely⁷ reducing the president's ability to move forward with a middle class agenda.

But economist⁸ Dan Greenhaus at trading firm Miller⁹ Tabak, says a Republican-led Congress would be good for the economy. "Furthermore, to the extent that a Republican takeover of the House leads to some finality on the tax cut debate, and hopefully an extension of the Bush tax cuts, that in turn will in theory help lead to further economic expansion and a reduction of the unemployment rate," he said.

Of course, not everyone agrees. Democrats say renewing the Bush tax cuts next year to the wealthiest Americans would add $700 billion to the deficit¹⁰.

Professor Joe Foudy at New York University's School of Business says demand drives job growth - not lower taxes. "I mean will businesses really hire someone because they can save money on their taxes for the next 12 months?"

Regardless of how Democrats fare in Tuesday's elections, Mr. Obama urged both parties to work together for the good of the country. "Political season's going to be over soon and when it does all of us are going to have a responsibility, Democrats and Republicans, to work together wherever we can to promote jobs and growth," he said.

The Commerce Department expects the US economy will grow at an annual rate of 2.6 percent this year.

Economists¹¹ say it would have to expand by 5 percent to reduce the nation's nearly double digit¹² unemployment rate by one percent.
 

1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 sluggish   

adj.懒惰的，迟钝的，无精打采的

参考例句：

• This humid heat makes you feel rather sluggish.这种湿热的天气使人感到懒洋洋的。
• Circulation is much more sluggish in the feet than in the hands.脚部的循环比手部的循环缓慢得多。

3 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 prosper   

v.成功，兴隆，昌盛；使成功，使昌隆，繁荣

参考例句：

• With her at the wheel,the company began to prosper.有了她当主管，公司开始兴旺起来。
• It is my earnest wish that this company will continue to prosper.我真诚希望这家公司会继续兴旺发达。

5 unemployed   

adj.失业的，没有工作的；未动用的，闲置的

参考例句：

• There are now over four million unemployed workers in this country.这个国家现有四百万失业人员。
• The unemployed hunger for jobs.失业者渴望得到工作。

6 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

7 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

8 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

9 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

10 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

11 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》

12 digit   

n.零到九的阿拉伯数字，手指，脚趾

参考例句：

• Her telephone number differs from mine by one digit.她的电话号码和我的只差一个数字。
• Many animals have five digits.许多动物有5趾。