U.S. President Barack Obama has sent a $3.8 trillion budget request to Congress for the fiscal year that begins on October first. It is the first step in what is expected to be a long, contentious budget process.
美国总统奥巴马向国会递交了2011财政年度总额达3万8千亿美元的财政预算草案，2011财政年度从今年10月1号开始。预计国会将为此开始漫长而又充满争议的辩论程序。
President Obama is walking a fine line in his 2011 budget. He is seeking $100 billion to tackle unemployment, while moving to trim the federal budget deficit.
奥巴马总统在2011财政年度预算草案中努力确保平衡。他一方面要求1千亿美元拨款解决失业问题，另一方面又要削减联邦财政赤字。
"It is time to hold Washington to the same standard families and businesses hold themselves. It is time to save what we can and what we must and live within our means once again," he said.
奥巴马说：“现在是用普通家庭与企业要求自己的标准来要求华盛顿的时候了。现在是尽可能节约、重新量入为出的时候了。”
His budget forecasts a deficit of roughly $1.6 trillion. President Obama says he plans to slash it in half by 2014 through a combination of tax increases on wealthy Americans, and cuts in domestic programs.
奥巴马预算草案估算出来的财政赤字大约有1万6千亿美元。奥巴马总统说，他计划对富人增加税收、削减国内项目，争取在2014年将联邦赤字削减一半。
"We simply cannot continue to spend as if deficits do not have consequences, as if waste does not matter," he added.
奥巴马说：“我们就是不能继续不考虑赤字的后果而花钱，不能不考虑浪费的后果而花钱。”
The president says his staff has gone through every budget item looking for waste and inefficiencies. Mr. Obama says he is standing by his pledge to freeze spending for three years in all areas except national security, and programs funded through special taxes that help the elderly and the poor.
奥巴马总统说，他的幕僚审阅了每一个项目，看看是否存在浪费和低效率。奥巴马说，他坚持已经做出的承诺，在三年内冻结所有领域的政府开支，国家安全与特殊税收资助的帮助老人与贫困民众的计划除外。
But the president stresses that even the Pentagon will have to justify every dollar spent.
但奥巴马总统强调说，即使是五角大楼，也要证明所花费的每一美元都是合理开销。
"Even though the Department of Defense is exempt from the budget freeze, it is not exempt from budget common sense," President Obama noted. "It is not exempt from looking for savings."
奥巴马说：“国防部虽然不在预算冻结之列，但要受预算常理的约束。国防部也属于节约开支的范畴。”
In brief remarks at the White House, the president urged Republicans and Democrats to work together to come up with responsible fiscal policies. Top Republicans responded by calling his budget proposal an example of irresponsibility.
奥巴马总统在白宫发表简短讲话时，敦促共和党人与民主党人共同制订负责的财政政策。共和党高层回应说，奥巴马提出的预算草案就是不负责任的典型。
In a written statement, John Boehner, the Republican leader in the House of Representatives, said the president's budget spends too much, taxes too much, and borrows too much.
国会众议院共和党领袖约翰·博纳(John Boehner)在一份书面声明中说，奥巴马提出的预算开支过大，增税过多，举债过高。 |