The U.S. government prepares for the shutdown next month

2015-09-18 「 1929 words / 4 minute 」
The U.S. government prepares for the shutdown next month.jpg
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奥巴马(Obama)政府已开始为下月可能出现的政府关门做准备,因为在堕胎问题上持强硬立场的保守派共和党人威胁要阻断公共部门所需的资金。
The Obama administration has begun preparations for a possible government shutdown next month as conservative Republicans who are on the warpath over abortion threaten to block public funding.
商界领袖们对预算“边缘政策”的破坏性后果发出了警告,美国总统巴拉克攠巴马(Barack Obama)内阁的一名成员表示需要准备应急计划,这让人“非常、非常无奈”。
With business leaders warning of the damaging consequences of budget brinkmanship, a member of President Barack Obama’s cabinet said the need for contingency planning was “very, very frustrating”.
美国内政部长萨莉ㄠ葧尔(Sally Jewell)周二表示:“简直没法说这件事有多可笑,(管理)一个7万名雇员各尽其责的机构……现在却不得不跟他们一起准备关门计划,就因为国会在预算上问题不作为。”
Sally Jewell, secretary of the interior, said on Tuesday: “I can’t tell you how ridiculous it is [running] an organisation with 70,000 people who are committed to their missions.. have to work with them on shutdown planning right now because Congress has not acted on the budget.”
在美国反复出现的预算危机中,最新的“最后期限”是本财年结束的9月30日,届时美国政府的资金会耗尽。为避免2013年的政府关门重演,议员们必须达成一项临时性协议,使政府在进入10月后能够保持当前的支出水平。
The latest deadline in the US’s recurring budget crisis is the end of the fiscal year on September 30, when government funding expires. To avert a repeat of the 2013 shutdown, lawmakers must reach a stopgap accord to continue spending at current levels into October.
尽管没有哪位国会领导人希望政府关门,但保守派议员们为避免关门的努力添加了难度,他们发誓要否决任何继续为卫生组织“计划生育”(Planned Parenthood)提供资金的支出议案。
While no congressional leaders want a shutdown, conservative lawmakers have complicated attempts to avert one by vowing to vote against any spending bill that continues funding for Planned Parenthood, a health group.
“计划生育”提供堕胎服务,保守派议员则对反堕胎活动人士用隐蔽摄像头拍到的视频感到愤怒,他们声称,这些视频显示“计划生育”的官员试图出售胎儿组织——而“计划生育”极力否认这一指控。
The group performs abortions, and conservatives have been outraged by hidden-camera videos filmed by anti-abortion activists, which they claim show its officials seeking to sell foetal tissue — a charge Planned Parenthood strenuously denies.