U.S. President George Bush says Washington will continue to act to stabilize financial markets shaken by fears of a global financial meltdown. The world's major central banks are joining forces in hopes of restoring investor confidence.
美国总统布什说，华盛顿将继续采取行动，稳定因担心全球财经体系崩溃而动荡的金融市场。世界各主要中央银行正在联合起来，希望恢复投资人的信心。
President Bush canceled travel to political fundraisers to stay at the White House and consult with economic advisors.
布什总统取消了参加政治募款会议的旅程，留在白宫与经济顾问进行商榷。
"The American people are concerned about the situation in our financial markets and our economy, and I share their concerns," the president said.
布什总统说：“美国人民在为我们金融市场和我国经济的形势担心，我和他们有同感。”
The U.S. government has taken charge of the nation's largest home finance agencies. It also moved to rescue the insurance firm American International Group, the failure of which Mr. Bush says could have caused a severe disruption in financial markets and threatened other sectors of the economy.
美国政府已经接管了最大的住房贷款机构。美国政府还采取行动挽救保险公司美国国际集团，即AIG。布什总统说这家公司的失败可能严重扰乱金融市场并危及其它经济领域。
The speed of government action during the past week has largely left lawmakers behind. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson informed Congress of the $85 billion loan for AIG only after the deal was done.
政府的迅速行动使得立法人员基本上落后于形势发展。财政部长保尔森在与AIG达成协议、向他们提供八百五十亿美元的贷款之后，才通知国会有关事宜。
Using taxpayer money to save faltering firms is the most direct, but not the only way the executive branch intervenes in economic crises. President Bush earlier this year got Congress to agree on an economic stimulus plan of tax rebates for consumers and tax incentives for businesses to spend money on new equipment.
利用纳税人的金钱去挽救摇摇欲坠的公司是财政部门抵挡经济危机的最直接、但并非唯一的手段。布什总统今年早些时候促使国会同意了一项经济刺激方案，退税给消费者并向企业提供购买新设备的税务优惠，来刺激经济增长。
Presidents affect markets through regulatory policy and in the way they spend public funds as the amount of assistance budgeted for corporate research and development, for example, either encourages or discourages businesses from making similar investments.
总统是通过管制方针来影响市场的，也通过他们在预算中使用公共资金帮助公司开展研发的方式来影响市场，例如，他们可以鼓励公司作类似的投资，或者不鼓励它们这样作。
Presidents also affect economies with public policy. President Bush says Congress can help the economy by passing free-trade agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea to help American businesses sell more goods overseas. He also wants to expand offshore oil drilling which he says will ultimately reduce energy costs.
总统也应用公共政策来影响经济。布什总统说，国会通过批准与哥伦比亚、巴拿马和韩国的自由贸易协议，促使美国企业向国外销售更多商品，来帮助美国经济的发展。他也希望发展近海石油开采，他说，这最终会降低美国能源价格。
Presidents do not directly affect monetary policy because the U.S. Federal Reserve is an independent entity. The Fed has joined other nations' central banks to pump hundreds of billions of dollars into global financial markets in hopes of restoring investor confidence and encouraging banks to lend each other money.
总统并不直接影响货币政策，因为美国联邦储备系统是独立的机构。美联储现在已经与其它国家的中央银行一起向全球金融市场注入几千亿美元的资金，希望恢复投资人的信心，并鼓励银行相互借贷。
President Bush says it is a substantial step to provide additional liquidity to the U.S. financial system.
布什总统说，向美国金融体系提供更多流通资金是切实可行的步骤。
"These actions are necessary and they are important and the markets are adjusting to them,"he said. "Our financial markets continue to deal with serious challenges. As our recent actions demonstrate, my administration is focused on meeting these challenges. The American people can be sure we will continue to act to strengthen and stabilize our financial markets and improve investor confidence."
他说：“这些行动是必需的、也是重要的，而市场正在进行调整以适应这些变动。我们的金融市场在继续处理严重问题。正如我们近年来的行动所显示的那样，我国政府正集中精力应对这些考验。美国人民可以确信我们将继续采取行动加强并稳定我们的金融市场，并且增强投资者的信心。”
The U.S. economy has been hurt by falling home values and high energy and food costs. A public opinion poll by CBS News and the New York Times this week said the economy and jobs are the biggest issues on the minds of nearly half the American voters before November elections.
美国经济受到房价下跌、能源及食品价格飞涨的影响。哥伦比亚广播公司与纽约时报本周进行的民意调查显示，在十一月大选前，在近一半美国选民心头上的大事就是美国经济和就业机会。 |