Americans Brace for Government Shutdown

     Anxiety(焦虑渴望) is filling the air in Washington D.C., as the clock ticks closer to a federal government shutdown with no budget approval. Lawmakers continued the debate Friday, leaving tourists in the nation's capital wondering whether it will be their last day to see the sights, and government employees wondering whether Monday will be a day off from work.

    Democrats and Republicans in Congress cannot seem to agree on a federal budget, but they can agree that a government shutdown will hurt the American people at home and abroad.

    Senate Majority Leader Harry¹ Reid told reporters Friday that the Republican-led House needs to make a quick decision to end the budget impasse². He warned that a government shutdown could affect everyone, from Americans trying to get a home or business loan to the nearly one million federal government employees who will be denied the right to come to work.

    "A federal government shutdown doesn’t mean they lock the doors to the Capitol building in Washington, but it does mean it has everyday consequences for people throughout America," he said.

    More than 30 House Republicans gathered on the steps of the Capitol Friday. They warned of the repercussion（反射反应）s of a government shutdown on military personnel and their families.

    Republican Representative Rick Crawford told reporters that one of his constituents³ in the military called him Friday expressing concern about his family's finances in case of a government shutdown.

    "They got bills to pay. He's got a wife and four kids to feed. When the money is not there, their bills don't get paid. Their credit ratings suffer. We have opened up a can of worms here that we can't even calculate what the devastation⁴ might be to our military and their families. We are asking for responsibility from the Senate," Crawford said.

    But tourists in Washington seem to have no interest in the political seesaw⁵ between the Democratic-held Senate and Republican-held House of Representatives.

    Tourist Jane Stanz says if the tourist attractions are closed, she will spend her time writing letters to Congress. "Come on. Let's get with it. This isn't a political hot potato. Quit advancing political issues, let's get down to what needs to get done," Stanz said.

    Tourist Susan Comstock is enjoying a front row seat to the budget debate in Washington. "I don’t think we could be at a better spot with all of this going on. I mean to be here when all this talk has been going on, it's been very interesting," she said.

    A shutdown means American troops in Afghanistan, Iraq and elsewhere around the world would have a temporary halt in their pay. In addition, as many as 800,000 of the 1.9 million civilian⁶ federal workers deemed non-essential could be told to not to come to work.

    Federal government employee John Wade⁷ says it will affect his family’s budget, but that it comes with the job. "It’s just part of the process, I think. We get caught in the middle of it, but that is just the way it goes," he said.

    But federal employee Geoffrey Suver does not feel the same. "I think it’s a disservice to the employees," Suver said.

    Lawmakers have until midnight local time to pass a budget for fiscal⁸ year 2011, which ends September 30.

    If not, Washington's art, history and cultural museums along the National Mall will be closed. Iconic monuments like the Statue of Liberty in New York City and the Washington Monument will be shut down.

    And a popular springtime event in Washington, the National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade, scheduled for Saturday will be called off.

    Washington, D.C. residents will also find their trash not being picked up, because some city services are subsidized by federal funds.

    It would be the first partial government shutdown in 15 years. In 1995-1996, a budget impasse between then-President Bill Clinton and Republican congressional leaders led to a pair of government shutdowns that lasted a total of 28 days.（本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑）

1 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

2 impasse   

n.僵局；死路

参考例句：

• The government had reached an impasse.政府陷入绝境。
• Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。

3 constituents   

n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素

参考例句：

• She has the full support of her constituents. 她得到本区选民的全力支持。
• Hydrogen and oxygen are the constituents of water. 氢和氧是水的主要成分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 seesaw   

n.跷跷板

参考例句：

• Prices have gone up and down like a seesaw this year.今年的价格像跷跷板一样时涨时跌。
• The children are playing at seesaw.孩子们在玩跷跷板。

6 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

7 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

8 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。