美国国家公共电台 NPR Trump's 'America First' Agenda Marks Sharp Break In U.S. Economic Policy

 

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Tonight's speech gives the president a chance to clarify what he means by America first. Throughout his campaign, he contended the United States was getting the shaft¹.

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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP²: Erasing³ national borders does not make people safer or more prosperous. It undermines democracy and trades away prosperity. We're giving it away.

INSKEEP: Less clear is what economic program the president intends to pursue now. NPR's Scott Horsley reports.

SCOTT HORSLEY, BYLINE⁴: Economic nationalism plays well with many of the president's most ardent⁵ supporters. People like James Evert, who attended a Trump rally in Florida earlier this month.

JAMES EVERT: A lot of people here are pro-America and looking to just support a president that finally says, I'm for you, the working man. His number one concern is Americans, not for all the other people around the world.

HORSLEY: That narrow focus on American workers showed up on one of Trump's first days in office. As the president recalled for a group of conservative activists⁶ last week, he and his aides were discussing plans to restart two stalled pipelines⁸.

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TRUMP: I said, who makes the pipes for the pipeline⁷? Well, Sir, it comes from all over the world, isn't that wonderful? I said nope. It comes from the United States or we're not building it.

HORSLEY: Trump directed his commerce secretary to come up with a plan to ensure domestic pipelines use American materials. But the order includes considerable wiggle room, and it may run afoul of international trade rules. Nevertheless, some people welcome the president's push.

SCOTT PAUL: I thought it's about time.

HORSLEY: Scott Paul heads the Alliance for American Manufacturing, a partnership⁹ between the Steelworkers Union and domestic steel companies. Thousands of steel jobs have been lost in recent years. And Paul says those idle workers would be happy to go back to work making pipe. First, though, their employers will have to be convinced. Trump's agenda has staying power.

PAUL: It's kind of the chicken and egg thing. U.S. steel makers¹⁰ aren't going to open up lines to make massive amount of pipes if they don't think pipes are going to be in demand. But once they know there's going to be a market, this is a product that the steel industry is going to be eager to deliver.

HORSLEY: Likewise, Trump's been pressing automakers to locate more plants in the U.S. But car-making is increasingly a global business. Many American automakers rely heavily on imported parts, while many foreign companies employ workers here in the U.S. Kelsey Mays is senior editor of the website cars.com, which compiles an annual index of the most American car models.

KELSEY MAYS: The number one American-made car was the Toyota Camry. And that may surprise some people because Toyota obviously isn't based here in the United States. But the Camry has 75 percent domestic content. It's built in Georgetown, Ky. and Lafayette, Ind., and it employs a number of people building it.

HORSLEY: The biggest disconnect between Trump's narrow brand of nationalism and the reality of global supply chains showed up when the president visited a Boeing plant earlier this month to celebrate the rollout of a new 787 Dreamliner.

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TRUMP: This plane, as you know, was built right here in the great state of South Carolina. Our goal as a nation must be to rely less on imports and more on products made here in the USA.

HORSLEY: While Boeing is an American company, the Dreamliner is a melting pot. Its fuselage comes from Italy. The wings are from Japan. Passenger doors are built in France. What's more, aviation consultant¹¹ Richard Aboulafia of the Teal Group says 85 percent of the planes are sold overseas.

RICHARD ABOULAFIA: You've got a plane that's heavily sourced from abroad and overwhelmingly goes to international customers. This is a poster child for globalization.

HORSLEY: Big exporters like Boeing would have a big target on their back if Trump's protectionist policies end up starting a trade war. With its 6,400-mile range, the Dreamliner is built to carry people quickly and easily across oceans and between continents, a flight path that could be bumpy¹² with a new nationalistic president at the controls. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.

1 shaft   

n.(工具的)柄，杆状物

参考例句：

• He was wounded by a shaft.他被箭击中受伤。
• This is the shaft of a steam engine.这是一个蒸汽机主轴。

2 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

3 erasing   

v.擦掉( erase的现在分词 )；抹去；清除

参考例句：

• He was like a sponge, erasing the past, soaking up the future. 他象一块海绵，挤出过去，吸进未来。 来自辞典例句
• Suddenly, fear overtook longing, erasing memories. 突然，恐惧淹没了渴望，泯灭了回忆。 来自辞典例句

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 ardent   

adj.热情的，热烈的，强烈的，烈性的

参考例句：

• He's an ardent supporter of the local football team.他是本地足球队的热情支持者。
• Ardent expectations were held by his parents for his college career.他父母对他的大学学习抱着殷切的期望。

6 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 pipeline   

n.管道，管线

参考例句：

• The pipeline supplies Jordan with 15 per cent of its crude oil.该管道供给约旦15%的原油。
• A single pipeline serves all the houses with water.一条单管路给所有的房子供水。

8 pipelines   

管道( pipeline的名词复数 )； 输油管道； 在考虑（或规划、准备） 中； 在酿中

参考例句：

• The oil is carried to the oil refinery by pipelines. 石油通过输油管输送到炼油厂。
• The oil carried in pipelines. 石油用管道输送。

9 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

10 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

12 bumpy   

adj.颠簸不平的，崎岖的

参考例句：

• I think we've a bumpy road ahead of us.我觉得我们将要面临一段困难时期。
• The wide paved road degenerated into a narrow bumpy track.铺好的宽阔道路渐渐变窄，成了一条崎岖不平的小径。