2013-10-02 【國際新聞學英語：國會僵局迫使美國政府17年來再次關閉（一）】
新聞原文內容節錄自washingtonpost
Shutdown begins:
Stalemate forces first U.S. government closure in 17 years
美國政府在週二進入十七年來首次關閉狀態，因國會對於總統歐巴馬簽署的醫療保健倡議法出現嚴重分歧而未能在聯邦政府機關預算上達成協議。
The U.S. government began to shut down for the first time in 17 years early Tuesday, 
after a Congress bitterly divided over President Obama’s signature health-care initiative failed to reach agreement to fund federal agencies.
在午夜前，由共和黨把持的眾議院通過針對政府近期預算的臨時撥款提案，而這已是兩星期內的第三次臨時撥款提案，就像前兩次一樣，共和黨仍然要求修改可負擔健保法案內容，透過要求延遲執行「個人強制保險規定」以達成阻礙健保法案施行的目的，而「個人強制保險規定」是美國政府要求全體國民參加健保的基石。
Hours before a midnight deadline, the Republican House passed its third proposal in two weeks to fund the government for a matter of weeks. Like the previous plans, the new one sought to undermine the Affordable Care Act, this time by delaying enforcement of the “individual mandate,” a cornerstone of the law that requires all Americans to obtain health insurance.
這項提案也將剝奪國會議員及議員助手的長期政府衛生福利。
The new measure also sought to strip lawmakers and their aides of long-standing government health benefits.
民主黨主導的參議院迅速否決這項提案，參議員多數派領袖Harry M. Reid(內華達州民主黨)促請眾議院議長John A. Boehner（俄亥俄州共和黨）放棄攻擊健保反案並且儘快通過簡易預算案來維持政府運作，他語帶警告的表示「否則讓政府關閉的責任將落在他(John A. Boehner)的肩膀上」
The Democratic-led Senate quickly rejected that plan on a party-line vote. Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) urged House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) to abandon the assault on the health-care law and pass a simple bill to keep the government open. Otherwise, Reid warned, “the responsibility for this Republican government shutdown will rest squarely on his shoulders.”
Boehner拒絕妥協。反而在凌晨一點舉行的黨內記名投票獲得支持，要求召開眾議院參議院召開特殊會議，針對兩黨之間的分歧進行談判，而數百萬聯邦政府雇員面臨無薪假的命運和政府機構為人民提供的服務也隨著政府幾乎確定停擺陷入懸而未決。
Boehner refused to yield. He instead won approval, in a 1 a.m. largely party-line roll call, requesting a special House-Senate committee to meet in the coming days to resolve differences between the two parties, leaving in limbo the fate of millions of federal workers and the services they provide.
午夜前，美國白宮預算辦公室發佈通知備忘錄指示各機構「因為預算沒有撥款，開始實施有序的關閉計劃」
Shortly before midnight, the White House budget office issued a memo instructing agencies to “execute plans for an orderly shutdown due to the absence of appropriations.”
這樣的僵局意味著80萬聯邦政府僱員將於週二開始放無薪假。國家公園、古蹟和博物館，以及多數聯邦機構將關閉。數萬名航空交通管制人員、獄警和邊境巡邏警員將被迫無薪工作。許多國會聽證會——包括原定於週二招開發生於上個月的華盛頓海軍工廠槍擊案聽證會也將被推遲。
The impasse means 800,000 federal workers will be furloughed Tuesday. National parks, monuments and museums, as well as most federal offices, will close. Tens of thousands of air-traffic controllers, prison guards and Border Patrol agents will be required to serve without pay. And many congressional hearings — including one scheduled for Tuesday on last month’s Washington Navy Yard shootings — will be postponed.
圖片來源：whitehouse.gov
| 精選單字： | 詞性與解釋 | 音韻代碼 |
| bitterly | adv.殘酷地 | btl |
| divided | a.分開的 | dvd |
| initiative | n.率先;發言權;倡議 | anʃt |
| sought | seek之過去式、過去分詞 | s(輸入st往上查找) |
| undermine | v.破壞 | adm |
| enforcement | n.施行 | afm |
| cornerstone | adv.的確.當然 | stl |
| mandate | n.命令 | md |
| aide | n.副手;助理 | a(輸入ad往上查找） |
| Democratic | a.民主的(+party=民主黨) | dmkt |
| squarely | adv.筆直;斷然 | qwl |
| limbo | n.忘卻;地獄邊緣 | lb |
| absence | n.不在;缺席;無 | as |
| appropriation | n.撥款;專用 | appaʃ |
| impasse | n.僵局 | ap |
| furlough | n,休假;暫時解僱 | fl |
| congressional | a.國會的 | kgʃn |
| postponed | v.延期 | pp |
