42 布什为扩张贸易权利不懈努力

 

Bush Faces Uphill Battle For Expanded Trade Authority

Paula Wolfson

White House

18 Jun 2001 22:16 UTC

 

President Bush is 1)stepping up his fight for expanded trade negotiating powers. He faces a 2)tough battle in the U.S. Congress, where opposition¹ is strong.

Like Bill Clinton before him, President Bush faces 3)substantial opposition in Congress to an expansion of his trade 4)negotiating 5)authority.

Until 1994, Congress 6)routinely gave the White House the ability to 7)submit trade pacts² for a simple yes or no vote. Under this arrangement - known for years as "fast track" - 8)lawmakers gave up the ability to make any changes.

This process was welcomed by foreign governments, and trade experts say it gave an 9)impetus to negotiations³.

But in recent years, it has fallen out of favor on Capitol Hill. Many Democrats⁴ oppose 10)enhanced trade negotiating authority because they fear it might result in pacts with weak language on labor⁵ rights and the environment. And some Republicans, especially during the Clinton years, expressed concern it would put too much power in the hands of the president.

But Mr. Bush appears convinced he can win congressional approval. And he is urging leaders of major farm organizations to help. "This call to arms for trade promotion⁶ authority is not a hollow call. This is important," Mr. Bush said. "It's not only important for this president, it's important for future presidents. Because the world is a fantastic opportunity for us, and it's an opportunity we have got to seize if we expect to have 11)prosperity in one of the most vital sectors⁷ in our nation."

The president brought representatives of dozens of farm groups to the White House Monday to talk about trade. He said good agreements are 12)vital to the future of American agriculture. "This is an area where our country has a competitive advantage. We're really good at it. And the job of this administration must be to open up more markets for ag [agricultural] products," Mr. Bush said.

Mr. Bush noted⁸ that 25 percent of all farm 13)revenue in the United States is 14)generated by exports. He said enhanced trade negotiating authority is essential if American farmers are to overcome barriers in the forms of 15)tariffs, quotas⁹, and "unscientific thought" about American agricultural products.

But as he said those words, the president knew only too well that he remains¹⁰ far short of the majority he needs to get the 16)legislation through the 17)House of Representatives. Some Democrats are offering support in exchange for sanctions language. They want any trading partner that fails to live up to labor and environmental standards to lose access to the U.S. market. In his remarks to farm leaders, Mr. Bush indicated such conditions would be totally unacceptable - a sign that the fight over this bill could go on for some time.

 

 

(1)      step up v.走近, 逐步增加, 提升, 提高

(2)      tough[tQf]n.恶棍adj.强硬的, 艰苦的adv.强硬地, 顽强地

(3)      substantial[sEb5stAnF(E)l]adj.坚固的, 实质的, 真实的

(4)      negotiating n.谈判

(5)      authority[C:5WRrItI]n.权威, 威信, 权威人士, 权力

(6)      routinely adv.例行公事地

(7)      submit[sEb5mIt]v.(使)服从, (使)顺从vt.提交, 递交

(8)      lawmaker[5lC:meIkE(r)]n.立法者

(9)      impetus[5ImpItEs]n.推动力, 促进

(10)      enhance[In5hB:ns; (?@) In5hAns]vt.提高, 增强v.提高

(11)      prosperity[prR5spErEtI]n.繁荣

(12)      vital[5vaIt(E)l]adj.生死攸关的, 重大的, 至关重要的, 所必需的

(13)      revenue[5revEnju:; (?@) 5revEnu:]n.收入, 国家的收入, 税收

(14)      generate[`dVenEreIt]vt.产生, 发生

(15)      tariff[5tArIf]n.关税, 关税表, 税则vt.课以关税

(16)      legislation[ledVIs5leIF(E)n]n.立法, 法律的制定(或通过)

(17)      House of Representatives n. （美国、新西兰、澳大利亚等国的）众议院

 

 

 

 

 

 

1 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

2 pacts   

条约( pact的名词复数 )； 协定； 公约

参考例句：

• Vassals can no longer accept one-sided defensive pacts (!). 附庸国不会接受单方面的共同防御协定。
• Well, they are EU members now and have formed solidarity pacts with members such as Poland. 他们现在已经是欧盟的一部分了并且他们和欧盟成员诸如波兰等以签署了合作协议。

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

6 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

7 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 quotas   

（正式限定的）定量( quota的名词复数 )； 定额； 指标； 摊派

参考例句：

• In fulfilling the production quotas, John made rings round all his fellow workers. 约翰完成生产定额大大超过他的同事们。
• Quotas of the means of production are allocated by the higher administrative bodies to the lower ones. 物资指标按隶属关系分配。

10 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。