2016美國總統(tǒng)候選人大熱門、前駐華大使和猶他州州長(zhǎng)洪培博指出,歐洲亟需解決“民主赤字”的挑戰(zhàn)。他對(duì)卡梅倫首相建議:第一,英國留在歐盟對(duì)兩者都非常重要,英國應(yīng)擔(dān)起責(zé)任,用撒切爾革命推動(dòng)歐盟擺脫危機(jī);第二,保守黨需從共和黨去年的失利中吸取教訓(xùn),應(yīng)當(dāng)打造平易近人和藹可親的形象,否則的話人們連了解你政策的興趣都沒有。
測(cè)試中可能遇到的詞匯和知識(shí):
Jon Huntsman 同米特·羅姆尼類似,洪博培也來自摩門教派,當(dāng)過CEO,當(dāng)過州長(zhǎng),尋求過總統(tǒng)候選人提名。在擔(dān)任美國副貿(mào)易代表時(shí),洪博培在接受中國加入WTO的談判中發(fā)揮了重要作用。他是2016年總統(tǒng)候選人的熱門人選。
ramification [,ræm?f?'ke??(?)n 分叉,分支
Eurosceptic[?j??r???sk?pt?k] 歐洲懷疑主義的
red tape 繁文縟節(jié)。歐盟國家的繁文縟節(jié)常常達(dá)到不可思議的程度,比如,英國認(rèn)證的雪橇師到法國開雪橇店(如果沒有法國雪橇師資格證)會(huì)被逮捕。
TTIP 《跨大西洋貿(mào)易與投資伙伴協(xié)定》Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership,之前歐盟委員會(huì)與美國政府談判的《反假冒貿(mào)易協(xié)定》曾被歐洲議會(huì)否決。
wobbly ['w?bl?] 不穩(wěn)定的;擺動(dòng)的
down rabbit hole 你記得《愛麗絲漫游奇境記》中的情節(jié)嗎?
inanity [?'næn?t?] 空虛,淺薄
British Tories can learn from Republican mistakes(698 words)
Jon Huntsman
David Cameron faces tough decisions on Europe – most with lasting implications for Conservative party unity and all with long-term ramifications for Britain's prosperity. The UK prime minister must keep his country an active member of the EU while keeping hold of an increasingly eurosceptic Tory party.
It is hard to see how the UK can thrive without remaining inside the EU's vast internal market – a local free-trade block that can preserve and reward British innovation and entrepreneurship. Membership is good not only for Britain, but for the EU too. The UK has consistently been the main defender of EU competition policy as well as the home of its financial capital. Both are essential to drive prosperity in a continent smothered in red tape.
And Britain will only become more important to the EU: European growth depends on the outcome of upcoming free-trade negotiations between the US and the EU – the transatlantic trade and investment partnership. The most enthusiastic proponents in Europe are Germany and the UK, both of whom also want to spread the deregulatory successes of Gerhard Schröder and Margaret Thatcher to the rest of the EU.
So a UK exit could be fatal not just to the TTIP but also to the battle for free markets against state-run capitalism, which encourages cronyism. Some have dismissed Germany's recent success, claiming it is either not a result of its regulatory reforms or is inapplicable to the EU's southern rim. But where reforms have been successfully implemented, there have been signs of renewed economic life. As Thatcher once said, now is not the time to go “wobbly”.
There is no one as well suited as the modern Tories to maintaining and extending the rules-based economic miracle of the past two centuries. The UK cannot do it alone – and the US and EU are unlikely to do it without the UK. The British are the bridge. And, since growth is the cornerstone of independence, the TTIP could do more to preserve the UK's sovereignty than the abandonment of its historic partners.
But the necessity of Britain's EU engagement does not mean ignoring eurosceptics. Political dysfunction and economic stasis have increased the trust deficit between Europe's citizens and their politicians. This democratic deficit is as important as our fiscal and trade deficits.
Closing it will be delicate. Economic initiatives such as the TTIP will be unsustainable without greater support for the EU. It will also be hard to make the economic case for the tough structural reforms that the EU needs if it is to compete in this new century without more trust. Euroscepticism speaks to this issue – a real and messy problem.
But the Conservative party must learn from the failure of the Republicans in the last US election. The GOP based its strategy on the next news cycle instead of the next generation. My party's emphasis on tactics and personalities served only to disconnect it further from voters. Today's Republican party should be focused not only on tax reform, energy policy and rebuilding the opportunity ladder but also on institutional change – such as cleaning up a system of campaign finance that has become a national embarrassment.
The need for an inclusive manifesto holds true for the Tories as well. But it is difficult to get people, including members of your own party, to consider your reforms if they think – sometimes with good reason – that you do not like or respect them. The Conservative leadership must be careful not to be dismissive of those with deeply held beliefs, making sure to include them without letting them lead the party down rabbit holes in pursuit of cultural (or European) battles.
When a party stops solving problems, people move away from it. The Republican party's decay – from Iraq to our tolerance for inanity – is grounded in real policy failures. Our historic successes were in solving big problems. How Mr Cameron proceeds could prove to be valuable well beyond just the economics and the UK. Conservatives everywhere are looking for courageous leadership. If he succeeds, he could have a profound transatlantic impact.
The writer was formerly governor of Utah, US ambassador to China and a candidate for the Republican party nomination for president
請(qǐng)根據(jù)你所讀到的文章內(nèi)容,完成以下自測(cè)題目:
1.Mr. Huntsman uses the word “democratic deficit”, what is it?
A.America's democratic system is becoming insolvent.
B.America's citizens and their politicians do not trust each other.
C.Europe's citizens and their politicians do not trust each other.
D.The democratic deficit is the reason for fiscal and trade deficits.
答案(1)
2.Ukip Party underlines that UK is a net contributor to EU budget, “losing £120 billion a year”.
But why Mr. Huntsman believes UK's EU membership is profitable?
A.UK can get access to EU's vast internal market.
B.UK can use EU trade block to protect its national industries.
C.US-EU trade agreement needs UK's effort.
D.UK is smothered in red tape, thus it needs EU competition.
答案(2)
3.“Our historic successes were in solving big problems.” --PM Cameron should do what?
A.Help EU complete the transatlantic trade and investment partnership with US.
B.Spread Schröder and Thatcher's deregulatory successes to the rest of EU with Germany.
C.Show courageous leadership and build trust among the British peopke.
D.All of above.
答案(3)
4.What do we know about Huntsman's political stance?
A.He believes that focusing on tax reform and energy policy is a mistake.
B.He does not like Republican party's dealing with the Iraq war.
C.He claims that GOP's defeat is because it did not pay enough attention to the next generation.
D.He thinks that conservatives everywhere are looking for courageous leadership.
答案(4)
* * *
(1)答案:C.Europe's citizens and their politicians do not trust each other.
解釋:首先這個(gè)概念描述的是歐洲,Political dysfunction and economic stasis have increased the trust deficit… 其次,政客們無力解決經(jīng)濟(jì)難題讓歐洲的民眾對(duì)主流政黨越來越失望,從而一些民粹思潮開始涌現(xiàn)。洪培博認(rèn)為,這是一種信任的赤字,解決民主赤字和解決財(cái)政和貿(mào)易赤字一樣重要。D并未提到。
(2)答案:A.UK can get access to EU's vast internal market.
解釋:A是最大的好處,洪博培指出,由于英國的創(chuàng)新能力和企業(yè)家精神比較出色,可以依托歐盟巨大的市場(chǎng)來發(fā)展。如果脫離歐盟,各種內(nèi)部成員才享有的好處和優(yōu)惠就都沒有了。B不正確,歐盟的自由貿(mào)易關(guān)稅同盟can preserve and reward British innovation and entrepreneurship,A的好處是自由貿(mào)易而非保護(hù)主義。事實(shí)上,英美一直是西方國家中自貿(mào)傳統(tǒng)最深厚的。C正確,這是美國支持英國留下的原因,“英國能從美歐貿(mào)易協(xié)定中獲利”,才是問題的答案。D說的是歐陸國家,而非英國。
(3)答案:D.All of above.
解釋:ABC都是正確的。
洪博培的建議可以總結(jié)為這三個(gè)方面,當(dāng)然了,沒有一件事是容易做的。面對(duì)陷入歐洲懷疑主義的本黨同僚,卡梅倫被迫制定了英國“脫歐公投”計(jì)劃。
(4)答案:C
解釋stance立場(chǎng)的意思是對(duì)某個(gè)或某些議題支持與否、贊成與否,也就是二選一式的。A不正確是因?yàn)樗J(rèn)為,僅僅關(guān)注這些問題是不夠的,還需要想辦法改革選舉募資制度。CD都是他的觀點(diǎn)和主張,但這是開放式的,不是二選一式的。