Spiiker新聞萬花筒，VOA新聞，帶您看世界，聽世界，
感受世界的點點滴滴。
練聽力，提能力，小編與您共努力！
Economist Calls Obama Budget Commendable, Unrealistic
Coming in at 2,000 pages, the 2016 federal budget is a fiscal road map for President Barack Obama’s remaining two years and beyond. Its aim: to bolster the U.S. recovery, keep America safe and invest in the middle class.
But at nearly $4 trillion, it carries a hefty price tag. It includes $561 billion in military spending, $478 billion for public works projects, $526 billion in nonmilitary spending, plus assorted tax cuts for the middle class and free community college for students.
Economist Diane Lim at the Committee for Economic Development in Washington said that although the plan is commendable, it's also unrealistic.
“I have no problem with the investment, and I think, in fact, our nation does not invest enough in things that will promote longer term economic growth," she said. "It’s just that we have to come up with realistic ways to pay for it. Otherwise, those investments are never going to happen.”
The budget proposes more than $2 trillion in tax hikes over the next 10 years, mostly on corporations and the wealthy to help pay for these initiatives. But Republican majorities in both houses of Congress are unlikely to accept them.
As it stands, the budget would also add another $6 trillion to the national debt by 2026.
"So if you go out a decade later or two decades later, after the end of the 10-year budget window, we still haven’t done anything to figure out how are we going to keep health care costs down so that Medicare spending as a share of GDP doesn’t keep rising so dramatically,” Lim said.
That should worry investors, Lim said, because the world's largest economy is only as good as its financial health.
But in testimony before Congress on Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said that not only is the U.S. economy growing at a sustainable level, it's also doing better than those of most other countries.
"The fact is our businesses created nearly 3 million jobs last year, the most jobs since the late '90s," he said. "From a global perspective, we continue to outperform our trading partners, many of whom are still trying to climb out of the vast hole created by the global economic crisis."
Congress and the president must still agree on the budget before it can become law, and unless the two sides have the political will to deal with the nation’s expensive health care and retirement programs and its unsustainable high debt, Lim said, the spending plan isn't going anywhere.
"Very, very little of it will pass," she said. "I can guarantee you that.”
詞匯解析
finance
難度：4星核心詞匯，屬常用3000詞
英漢解釋
n.金融；財政；資金
vt.給 ... 提供資金；負擔經(jīng)費
參考例句
用作名詞 (n.)
The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the minister in charge of finance in Britain.
英國財政大臣是負責財政的大臣。
用作及物動詞 (vt.)
The repairs to the school will be financed by the educational department.
學校的修繕將由教育部門出資。
************************
session
難度：4星核心詞匯，屬常用3000詞
英漢解釋
n.會議；會期；開庭期；學期；一段時間
參考例句
用作名詞 (n.)
If the negotiations between the rich northerly nations and poor southerly nations make headway, it is intended that a ministerial session in December should be arranged.
要是北方富國和南方窮國之間的談判獲得進展的話,就打算在十二月份安排召開部長級的會議。
************************
exchange
難度：4星核心詞匯，屬常用3000詞
英漢解釋
v.交換；兌換
n.交換；交易所；兌換；交戰(zhàn)
參考例句
用作動詞 (v.)
We exchanged our opinions about the event at the meeting.
在會上，我們就此事交換了意見。
用作名詞 (n.)
Gold shares jumped at the Stock Exchange yesterday.
證券交易所黃金股票昨天又大幅度上漲了。
************************
slave
難度：4星核心詞匯，屬常用3000詞
英漢解釋
n.奴隸；像奴隸般受制的人；【機】從動裝置
v.做苦工；做奴隸；拼命干
參考例句
用作名詞 (n.)
This slave dreamed of becoming a freeman.
這個奴隸夢想著成為一個自由人。
用作動詞 (v.)
Why should I slave away all my life !
我為什么要辛辛苦苦地干一輩子呀！
************************
pursue
難度：4星核心詞匯，屬常用3000詞
英漢解釋
v.追求；追捕；繼續(xù)執(zhí)行；從事
參考例句
用作動詞 (v.)
Everyone has the freedom to pursue their dreams.
每個人都有追求各自夢想的自由。
************************
spiritual
難度：1星暢通詞匯，屬常用20000詞
英漢解釋
adj.精神的；心靈的；與上帝有關的
n.(尤指美國南部黑人的)圣歌
參考例句
用作形容詞 (adj.)
Many young people could not resist the spiritual pollution.
很多年輕人不能抵制精神污染。
The monks were arraigned for not teaching things spiritual.
修道士們因不講授有關心靈的道理而受到指責。
************************
directly
難度：3星常用詞匯，屬常用6000詞
英漢解釋
adv.直接地；立即；正好地；完全
conj.<英>一...就...
參考例句
用作副詞 (adv.)
They bought the machine directly from the manufacturer.
他們直接從廠商那里購買了這臺機器。
His private actions are in direct contradiction with his publicly expressed opinions.
他私下的行為跟公開的言論完全是兩碼事。
See more information, you can visit us
英語口語測試 http://www.spiiker.com/daily/
在線學英語口語 http://www.spiiker.com/english-plaza.jsp
