英语六级阅读 Obama administration waging two-front battle against economic crisis
2009-02-11来源:和谐英语
The Obama administration was waging an aggressive two-front battle against America's worst economic crisis since the Great Depression in the 1930s.
After more than a week of private negotiations and intense public debate, Senate Tuesday approved the massive stimulus package, which President Barack Obama and his Democratic supporters called crucial to pull the U.S. economy out of its downward spiral.
Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner unveiled a new financial bailout package that could top 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars to restore the ailing financial system.
The Senate voted 61 to 37 to pass the massive bill, which the Congressional Budget Office now says would cost 838 billion dollars over the 10 years.www.hxen.net
Tuesday's approval, a significant victory for Obama, came after more than a week of private negotiations and intense public debate.
With job losses soaring nationwide, the White House, Senate Democrats and some key Republicans reached a tentative agreement of 780-billion-dollar package last week.
Democratic Senator Ben Nelson said the negotiators had gone over the proposed package "line by line, dollar by dollar."
"We trimmed the fat, fried the bacon and killed the sacred cow," he said. The 838-billion-dollar version was smaller than the original roughly 935-billion-dollar package. Many Republican senators have said they want the total package's cost down to about 800 billion dollars.
Among the 110 billion dollars in spending cuts: 40 billion dollars from a 79-billion-dollar fund aimed at helping states preserve school funding as they try to balance their budgets.
And negotiators also cut in half 15 billion dollars in "incentive grants" for states that meet certain goals for their initial education allotment."
Obama, who was addressing a gathering in Fort Myers, Florida, a city suffering a lot from the economic crisis, hailed the passage immediately.
"That is good, that is good news," Obama told the audience. "It is a good start."
Supporters of the stimulus package said the bill would be able to stop the downward spiral in the economy, spur a recovery and avoid a prolonged deflationary period.
"Throughout our history, the federal government has catalyzed a good idea, invested in the ingenuity and entrepreneurship of the American people, and let the private sector flourish," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
"Faced with an economic crisis today, we have an opportunity to make similar investment that will help our country prosper in the years to come," he added.www.hxen.net
Former Trade Representative Carla Hills also welcomed the package. "I think what we should do is to give our economy a jolt, and importantly, give our consumers and our businesses a vote of confidence, so consumers come back to the market, and the businesses are able to produce for that market," she told Xinhua.
Earlier Tuesday, Geithner announced an ambitious plan which includes a public-private partnership of over 1 trillion dollars to help strengthen banks.
Added to the congressional stimulus plan, which aims to get Americans spending again, the total of the combined efforts could easily pass 2 trillion dollars.
After more than a week of private negotiations and intense public debate, Senate Tuesday approved the massive stimulus package, which President Barack Obama and his Democratic supporters called crucial to pull the U.S. economy out of its downward spiral.
Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner unveiled a new financial bailout package that could top 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars to restore the ailing financial system.
The Senate voted 61 to 37 to pass the massive bill, which the Congressional Budget Office now says would cost 838 billion dollars over the 10 years.www.hxen.net
Tuesday's approval, a significant victory for Obama, came after more than a week of private negotiations and intense public debate.
With job losses soaring nationwide, the White House, Senate Democrats and some key Republicans reached a tentative agreement of 780-billion-dollar package last week.
Democratic Senator Ben Nelson said the negotiators had gone over the proposed package "line by line, dollar by dollar."
"We trimmed the fat, fried the bacon and killed the sacred cow," he said. The 838-billion-dollar version was smaller than the original roughly 935-billion-dollar package. Many Republican senators have said they want the total package's cost down to about 800 billion dollars.
Among the 110 billion dollars in spending cuts: 40 billion dollars from a 79-billion-dollar fund aimed at helping states preserve school funding as they try to balance their budgets.
And negotiators also cut in half 15 billion dollars in "incentive grants" for states that meet certain goals for their initial education allotment."
Obama, who was addressing a gathering in Fort Myers, Florida, a city suffering a lot from the economic crisis, hailed the passage immediately.
"That is good, that is good news," Obama told the audience. "It is a good start."
Supporters of the stimulus package said the bill would be able to stop the downward spiral in the economy, spur a recovery and avoid a prolonged deflationary period.
"Throughout our history, the federal government has catalyzed a good idea, invested in the ingenuity and entrepreneurship of the American people, and let the private sector flourish," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
"Faced with an economic crisis today, we have an opportunity to make similar investment that will help our country prosper in the years to come," he added.www.hxen.net
Former Trade Representative Carla Hills also welcomed the package. "I think what we should do is to give our economy a jolt, and importantly, give our consumers and our businesses a vote of confidence, so consumers come back to the market, and the businesses are able to produce for that market," she told Xinhua.
Earlier Tuesday, Geithner announced an ambitious plan which includes a public-private partnership of over 1 trillion dollars to help strengthen banks.
Added to the congressional stimulus plan, which aims to get Americans spending again, the total of the combined efforts could easily pass 2 trillion dollars.
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