英闻天下——362 US Sequester is to Start

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　　"At a time when our businesses have finally begun to get some traction¹, hiring new workers, bringing jobs back to America, we shouldn't be making a series of dumb, arbitrary cuts to things that businesses depend on and workers depend."

 

　　President Obama notes that "not everyone will feel the pain of these cuts right away," but stresses that "the pain ... will be real." He stresses that it's not a win for anybody, but a loss for the American people. He blames the congressional Republicans for the impasse², saying they refused to include the discussion on tax breaks and loopholes in the overall budget negotiation³.

 

　　The Republicans, on the other side, insisted that the talk about revenue is over. Here is House speaker John Boehner after Friday's White House meeting.

 

　　"The discussion about revenue, in my view, is over. It's about to taking on the spending problems here in Washington."

 

　　The republicans said that the tax reform should be addressed separately and also demanded for an entitlement reform.

 

　　According to the budget control act passed by the congress in 2011, a super committee, comprised of congressmen from both parties, was entrusted⁴ to draft a plan to reduce 1.2 trillion US dollars of Federal deficit⁵ over the next decade. Otherwise, the government will face an all-across spending cuts starting 2013.

 

　　The Senate on Thursday failed to pass two separate bills put forward by the Democrats⁶ and the Republicans respectively and make the all-across spending cuts known as the sequester⁷ here in Washington inevitable⁸.

 

　　President Obama says the cuts are not necessary, and inexcusable.

 

　　urged lawmakers to take action to extend an unrelated "continuing resolution" to fund most government operations beyond the current expiration⁹ date which falls on March 27th.

 

　　House speaker John Boehner says the House is going to act next week.

 

　　"I did lay out the House is going to move a continued resolution next week to fund the government pass March 27th. And I'm hopeful that we won't have to deal with the threat of government shutdown while we're dealing¹⁰ with the sequester at the same time. The House will act next week. I hope the Senate will follow soon."

 

　　And President Obama says he will work hard to get things done.

 

　　"I think that over time people do the right thing. And I will keep on reaching out and seeing if there're other formulas or other ways to jigger this thing into place so that -- so that we get a better result."

 

　　The President believes that "common sense prevails" and that both parties will eventually move forward on a comprehensive plan that also addresses entitlement reform and tax reform.

 

　　For China Radio International, this is Xiaohong, reporting from Washington.

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