美国国家公共电台 NPR Open Or Closed? Here's What Happens In A Partial Government Shutdown

 

KELLY MCEVERS, HOST:

Unless there's a last-minute agreement, the federal government is about to partially¹ shut down. Funding for most agencies expires at midnight tonight Eastern Time. So what exactly does that mean? NPR's Brian Naylor is here to tell us. Hey, Brian.

BRIAN NAYLOR, BYLINE²: Hi, Kelly.

MCEVERS: What is a partial shutdown?

NAYLOR: Right. So here we go again. We've been through this before.

MCEVERS: Yeah.

NAYLOR: What it means essentially³ is that for many government agencies, the money has run out or will run out at midnight. And so they'll have to close. Hundreds of thousands of employees will be told not to come to work. But the partial bit means that other functions will continue, and many hundreds of thousands of employees will be on the job. They just won't be getting paid for the most part. But - I'm sorry. Go ahead.

MCEVERS: No, go ahead. I was just going to say, where would we see the biggest difference if there is a shutdown?

NAYLOR: Well, so right now it seems as though the biggest difference from what happened in the last shutdown in 2013 is the national parks and monuments here in Washington and across the country will remain open. It was a very visible sign four years ago that things were not operating as usual. And it was pretty controversial. A group of veterans came to Washington to see the World War II memorial and, with the help of some Republican congressmen, pushed aside the barriers blocking their access. So the Trump⁴ administration doesn't want to see that kind of a scene playing out this time. So the parks will be open across the country. But there's a big caveat⁵. Many restrooms and visitor center buildings will be closed, and some areas of the parks won't be open to protect cultural artifacts and things.

MCEVERS: What about other government services that people rely on?

NAYLOR: Well, so, you know, there may not be a lot of things that people will notice. For instance, the post office will be open. Mail delivery will continue because the Postal⁶ Service has its own revenue stream. Other agencies and functions of the government will be considered, quote, unquote, "essential." For instance, so the borders still be patrolled, and the air traffic controllers and the TSA officers will still be on the job. They just won't be getting paid. Social Security checks will continue to go out. And active duty military service members will carry out their duties, but they won't be getting paid either.

MCEVERS: There are also other federal workers who are wondering if, you know, they'll be going to work not just in Washington but across the country. I mean, what kind of guidance are they getting?

NAYLOR: Well, it's been a little muddled⁷ so far. The last time, there were sort of clear-cut rules and things were posted. This time it's a little bit more ad hoc. Most employees will find out formally over the weekend that there will be a shutdown and they won't be required to come into work. I spoke⁸ with Max Stier at the Partnership⁹ for Public Service, who says for federal employees, that's really disruptive.

MAX STIER: There is no bigger morale¹⁰ destroyer than a government shutdown for people who care about serving the public. It is devastating¹¹. It's devastating for them. It's devastating for the people they serve. It's devastating for our economy. It's a lose all the way around.

MCEVERS: That was Max Stier with the Partnership for Public Service. And thanks to you, NPR's Brian Naylor.

NAYLOR: Thank you.

1 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

4 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

5 caveat   

n.警告； 防止误解的说明

参考例句：

• I would offer a caveat for those who want to join me in the dual calling.为防止发生误解，我想对那些想要步我后尘的人提出警告。
• As I have written before,that's quite a caveat.正如我以前所写，那确实是个警告。

6 postal   

adj.邮政的，邮局的

参考例句：

• A postal network now covers the whole country.邮路遍及全国。
• Remember to use postal code.勿忘使用邮政编码。

7 muddled   

adj.混乱的；糊涂的；头脑昏昏然的v.弄乱，弄糟( muddle的过去式)；使糊涂；对付，混日子

参考例句：

• He gets muddled when the teacher starts shouting. 老师一喊叫他就心烦意乱。
• I got muddled up and took the wrong turning. 我稀里糊涂地拐错了弯。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

9 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。

10 morale   

n.道德准则，士气，斗志

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is sinking lower every day.敌军的士气日益低落。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

11 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。