美参院否决众院赤字债务提案一托福阅读机经背景.docxVIP

智课网TOEFL备考资料美参院否决众院赤字债务提案一托福阅读机经背景 The Democratic Party-controlled U.S. Senate has blocked a plan passed by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives to cut the countrys budget and raise its debt ceiling. The vote Friday puts the emphasis on talks between the White House and top lawmakers to find a deal to raise the debt ceiling before a deadline on August 2. 民主党控制的美国参议院否决了共和党控制的众议院通过的削减预算和提高债限的提案。 A simple majority was needed to table, or kill, further consideration of the bill. The vote was 51 to 46. 参议院需要简单多数来搁置、或否决众议院提出的这项法案。参议院的投票结果为51票对46票。 Just one hour of comments were allowed before the vote took place. 在投票开始前只进行了一个小时的讨论。 Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who had called the House bill one of the worst he has ever seen, said it was now urgent to look for a feasible solution. 参议院多数党领袖哈里·里德曾将众议院的这项法案称为他所见过的最差的法案之一。他说，现在迫切需要寻求一个可行的解决方案。 There is simply no more time to waste debating and voting on measures that have no hopes of becoming law. We have no more time to waste playing partisan games, said Reid. As the saying goes, indecision becomes decision with time. Our time is running out before this gridlock, this refusal by the other side to move even an inch toward compromise becomes a decision to default on our debt. 里德说：“实在是没有更多的时间来对那些没有希望成为法律的方案进行争论和表决。我们没有更多时间来浪费在玩党派游戏上。正如一句老话所讲的， 随着时间的推移未决定的终会决定。我们的时间就快没了，在这种僵局、在这一提案被另一方否决后我们向妥协方案迈进一英寸之前，债务违约或将成为现实。” In the short time they had to speak, Republicans on the Senate floor all backed the Cut, Cap and Balance Act. It would have raised the debt limit by $2.4 trillion on the condition that Congress send a constitutional balanced budget amendment to the states for ratification and approve trillions in long-term spending cuts. 由于不得不在短时间内作出决定，参议院的共和党人都支持这项“削减、限制与平衡法案。”该法案将联邦政府借债上限提高了2.4万亿美元，条件是国会批准一项预算平衡宪法修正案，以认可和批准长期内削减数万亿美元的支出。 The Senate minority leader, Kentucky Republican Mitch McConnell, accused Democrats of being in a state of denial. 参议院少数党领袖、肯塔基州共和党参议员米奇·麦康