原作者：
来源Waiting for Mr Obama
译者pinkparasol
If President Obama has a big economic initiative up his sleeve, as he hinted recently, now would be a good time to let the rest of us in on it.
如果奥巴马总统真的有大的经济刺激方案成竹在胸，如他最近暗示的那样，那么现在是时候和我们一起分享了。
News on Friday confirmed that the economy was far weaker in the second quarter than originally believed, growing at 1.6 percent versus an initial reading of 2.4 percent. Grim reports on housing sales indicate that the slowdown has continued. In a normal recession, housing would lead the way up from the depths. Today, it appears to be leading the way back down.
周五有消息确认二季度的经济状况比预期要弱很多，仅增长1.6个百分点，初始读数则为2.4个百分点。关于房产销售的严酷报告表明经济滞后还在继续。通常而言房产可以带动不景气的经济。而如今，房产却在拖后经济发展。
Which brings us back to Mr. Obama. The fiscal stimulus of 2009, coupled with low interest rates and other Federal Reserve interventions, kept the recession from being much worse. But it has not been enough to revive hiring, without which a real recovery is impossible. In the meantime and even more ominously, economic policy making has all but ground to a halt.
这些事实又把我们带回奥巴马地方。2009年的财经刺激，低息以及美联储所进行的干预使得衰退形式没有进一步恶化。但是也没有创造更多的雇佣机会，做不到这一点的话，真正的经济复苏也就是个神话。与此同时，更不幸的是，我们所制定的经济政策又只是止步不前，困在原地
Congress is gridlocked. For nearly two months, Republicans blocked an extension of unemployment benefits, a basic recovery measure. They are still holding up a bill to spur more lending to small businesses.
国会一成不变。两个月来，共和党人阻挠最基本的恢复措施–扩大失业津贴补偿，他们仍然对增加给小型企业贷款的议案持否定态度。
In a much-anticipated speech on Friday, Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve chairman, reiterated his vow to do more to boost the economy if conditions worsened. He did not seem particularly convinced that anything the Fed could do would be enough.
在期许已久的周五演说中，美联储主席本*博曼克，一再许诺他将不遗余力促进经济发展如果状况有恶化。但他似乎不太相信美联储能够拿出有力的措施。
The question then is whether Mr. Obama will lead. He cannot force Congress to act, but he could pre-empt Republicans’ diatribes — on the deficit, on small business, on taxes — with tough truths and a big mission that would tie together the strategies and the sacrifices that will be needed to put the economy right.
问题是奥巴马先生是否会站出来。他不能强迫国会行动，但他可以用严峻的现实和重大使命堵住共和党人的嘴，后者对赤字、小企业和税收政策多有不满之辞，政府只有将各种策略结合起来，并付出相应的代价，才能挽救当前的经济形势
First, he needs to keep driving home that he is committed to addressing the deficit, and that he will call for widespread sacrifice to do so — starting with letting the Bush tax cuts for the richest Americans expire at year end. Mr. Obama must tell Americans that claims from Republican leaders that the country can both cut taxes and tackle the deficit are absurd and cynical.
首先，他需要让人相信他会为了解决赤字问题不遗余力，而且不惜做大范围的牺牲 – 从让布什的富人减税政策年底作废。 奥巴马先生一定要让全美国人知道共和党领导人所谓的减税和摆脱赤字可以并驾齐驱的理论是荒谬无稽的。
Next, he needs to explain why too much sacrifice, too soon, especially from the middle class, would do more harm than good while the economy is weak. More government support is needed until conditions improve.
其次，他还需要解释在经济脆弱的当下，太多、太快的牺牲是有害无益的，尤其是对于中产阶级而言。 情况改善前仍然需要更多的政府扶持。
Mr. Obama also needs to inspire Americans who have been ground down by the economic crisis and Washington’s small-bore sniping. He needs to rally the nation around a big idea — a project that is worth sacrificing for, worth paying for, worth working for. One that lets them know that there is more ahead than just a return to a status quo of lopsided growth in which corporate profits surge while jobs and incomes lag.
奥巴马先生还需要激励那些被经济危机和华盛顿的狭隘评论所击垮的美国人。他需要有一个大想法（举措）来感召全体国民 – 让大家觉得值得为其牺牲，值得为其付出，值得为之奋斗。要让大家知道未来不仅仅只是经济恢复回现状，继续不平稳，企业继续攫取利润，而工作机会和待遇却不会增加和提高。
That mission could be the “21st century infrastructure,” that Mr. Obama mentioned on a multi-city trip this month, “not just roads and bridges, but faster Internet access and high-speed rail.” It could be energy independence, with high-tech green jobs and a real chance for addressing global warming. Either of the above would make sense, economically and politically.
这个大使命可以是本月奥巴马在做多个城市访问时所提到的“21世纪构架”，“不单单局限于公路和桥梁，还包括快速网络接入和高速铁路”。 或者它可以能源独立，拥有高科技绿色工作以及实实在在的改进全球变暖的机会。 上述两点中的任意一个都有道理，无论是在经济层面还是政治层面。
Mr. Obama and his economic team had clearly hoped for an economic rebound in time for the midterm elections. They are not going to get it. The economic damage they inherited was too deep, and the economic stimulus they pushed through Congress, for all of the fight, was too small. Standing back is not doing the country or his party any good. We believe Americans are ready for hard truths and big ideas.
很明显，奥巴马和他的经济团队希望在选举中期出现经济复苏。但是他们的愿望是不会实现的。经济遗留问题十分深重，而他们通过国会批准的经济刺激计划和努力又太小。退避一旁对这个国家和他的政党没有任何益处。我们相信美国人民已经做好了迎接艰难事实以及大举措的准备。
