-
(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:
President Trump1 is calling for a big increase in defense2 spending next year - another $8.6 billion to pay for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and deep cuts to many domestic programs. That's all in the blueprint3 for the annual budget that the White House released today. Lawmakers are not likely to adopt many of the president's suggestions, but the document does offer a guide to Trump's priorities. NPR's Scott Horsley reports.
SCOTT HORSLEY, BYLINE4: President Trump wants to boost defense spending by $34 billion, or nearly 5 percent, in the fiscal5 year that begins in October. Trump also wants to increase spending on Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security by about 7 1/2 percent. The president would partially6 offset7 those costs with deep cuts elsewhere in the federal budget. Acting8 White House Budget Director Russell Vought says in a time of trillion-dollar deficits10, tradeoffs have to be made.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
RUSSELL VOUGHT: We need to continue to secure the country. We need to continue to secure the border. We're not going to be bashful about that. But at the same time, we're also going to say that we have many, many programs that are wasteful11 and inefficient12 that we can no longer afford.
HORSLEY: The president's budget calls for a 15 percent spending cut at the Department of Agriculture, a 23 percent cut at the State Department and a 31 percent cut at the EPA. Congress largely ignored calls for cuts like that during Trump's first two years in office. And Sharon Parrott of the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says cuts are likely to be an even tougher sell now that House Democrats13 have a shared grip on the purse strings14.
SHARON PARROTT: Ultimately, what the administration is saying is we need to spend a lot more on defense, but things like education and job training and environmental protection and infrastructure15 are unimportant for the nation's well-being16.
HORSLEY: The White House budget also calls for cuts to programs such as food stamps, Medicaid, housing assistance and welfare. Vought says in order to qualify for those programs, able-bodied adults should be working, or else enrolled17 in job training or some other community activity.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
VOUGHT: We can help low-income families and end dependency on government benefits by strengthening work requirements.
HORSLEY: Parrott notes that Congress rejected a bid to add work requirements to food stamps last year as part of the farm bill. But the administration is preparing to impose the requirements on its own.
PARROTT: The research really shows that these requirements don't do much to improve employment outcomes and do a lot to increase hardship among people who are already really struggling.
HORSLEY: During the campaign, Trump promised to balance the federal budget. But during his first two years in office, the deficit9 ballooned thanks to increased government spending and the GOP tax cut. White House economic adviser18 Larry Kudlow said over the weekend, deficits are nothing to obsess19 about, but Maya MacGuineas of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget disagrees.
MAYA MACGUINEAS: Worrying about the deficit is not a popular concern right now, but it doesn't mean it's not an important thing to be worrying about. And we are clearly on the wrong path.
HORSLEY: Even the administration's own forecast now projects trillion-dollar deficits in each of the next four years. And MacGuineas notes despite rosy20 White House economic projections21, the red ink is expected to keep flowing long after Trump leaves office.
MACGUINEAS: Even under really heroic economic assumptions, the savings22 in this budget aren't enough to put us on a really sustainable path. It would still have very large budget deficits at a time when the administration is assuming very strong economic performance.
HORSLEY: MacGuineas does see some encouraging proposals in the White House budget, including plans to cut prescription23 drug prices and find other health care savings.
MACGUINEAS: There are a lot of good ideas in this budget. And the problem is because it relies on gimmicks24 and unrealistic economic growth assumptions, they don't get treated as seriously as they otherwise should.
HORSLEY: And the call for additional border wall funding suggests the budget fight that led to a 35-day government shutdown is far from over. Scott Horsley, NPR News, the White House.
1 trump | |
n.王牌,法宝;v.打出王牌,吹喇叭 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
2 defense | |
n.防御,保卫;[pl.]防务工事;辩护,答辩 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
3 blueprint | |
n.蓝图,设计图,计划;vt.制成蓝图,计划 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
4 byline | |
n.署名;v.署名 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
5 fiscal | |
adj.财政的,会计的,国库的,国库岁入的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
6 partially | |
adv.部分地,从某些方面讲 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
7 offset | |
n.分支,补偿;v.抵消,补偿 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
8 acting | |
n.演戏,行为,假装;adj.代理的,临时的,演出用的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
9 deficit | |
n.亏空,亏损;赤字,逆差 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
10 deficits | |
n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 );赤字;亏空;亏损 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
11 wasteful | |
adj.(造成)浪费的,挥霍的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
12 inefficient | |
adj.效率低的,无效的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
13 democrats | |
n.民主主义者,民主人士( democrat的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|
14 strings | |
n.弦 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
15 infrastructure | |
n.下部构造,下部组织,基础结构,基础设施 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
16 well-being | |
n.安康,安乐,幸福 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
17 enrolled | |
adj.入学登记了的v.[亦作enrol]( enroll的过去式和过去分词 );登记,招收,使入伍(或入会、入学等),参加,成为成员;记入名册;卷起,包起 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
18 adviser | |
n.劝告者,顾问 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
19 obsess | |
vt.使着迷,使心神不定,(恶魔)困扰 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
20 rosy | |
adj.美好的,乐观的,玫瑰色的 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
21 projections | |
预测( projection的名词复数 ); 投影; 投掷; 突起物 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
22 savings | |
n.存款,储蓄 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
23 prescription | |
n.处方,开药;指示,规定 | |
参考例句: |
|
|
24 gimmicks | |
n.花招,诡计,骗人的玩意儿( gimmick的名词复数 ) | |
参考例句: |
|
|