中國網(wǎng)站品牌欄目（頻道）
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 The cover of latest Time magazine. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was named Person of the Year by Time magazine on Wednesday, giving him a high-profile boost as he tries to fend off proposals that might weaken the Fed's independence. [Agencies]
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Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was named Person of the Year by Time magazine on Wednesday, giving him a high-profile boost as he tries to fend off proposals that might weaken the Fed's independence. The selection puts the mild-mannered Bernanke, a former professor, in the company of U.S. President Barack Obama, Pope John Paul II and Russian President Vladimir Putin, among other prominent world figures the magazine has picked in past years. The Senate is considering Bernanke's nomination to a second term to head the Fed -- the US central bank -- and while he is expected to win confirmation, criticism of the Fed among the public and members of Congress is at its highest in decades. The Fed's role in bailouts of Wall Street has prompted criticism from both Republicans and Democrats. Some lawmakers are pushing proposals to curb the Fed's regulatory powers and open up its interest rate decision to congressional audits. The Fed worries that congressional second-guessing of its policy decisions would compromise its fiercely-guarded independence. One poll by Rasmussen Reports this month showed public support for Bernanke's nomination at a scant 21 percent, with 41 percent stating opposition, but he continues to enjoy support on Wall Street and among many lawmakers. "Ben is the person that kept us from going over the edge of the precipice and into the abyss," said former Fed Governor Lyle Gramley, now a senior economic adviser at Soleil Securities. But Republican Senator Jim Bunning, one of the Fed's sharpest critics, said Time's pick was a reward for "failure." "Many of the problems our markets are facing right now could have been avoided had Chairman Bernanke not been asleep at the switch," Bunning said in a statement. Time credited the 56-year-old Bernanke with creative leadership that helped set the U.S. economy on a path to recovery even as he and other policy makers remain concerned about a high unemployment rate of 10 percent. (Read by Lee Hannon. Lee Hannon is a multimedia journalist at the China Daily Web site.) 點(diǎn)擊查看更多雙語新聞
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《時(shí)代》雜志年度人物于本周三揭曉，美國聯(lián)邦儲(chǔ)備委員會(huì)主席本?伯南克當(dāng)選。時(shí)值伯南克試圖限制可能會(huì)削弱美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)獨(dú)立性提議的當(dāng)口，當(dāng)選《時(shí)代》年度人物無疑將大助其一臂之力。 伯南克溫文爾雅，曾是一名教授。《時(shí)代》雜志往年評(píng)選出的年度杰出人物包括美國總統(tǒng)貝拉克?奧巴馬、教皇約翰?保羅二世以及俄羅斯前總統(tǒng)弗拉基米爾?普京等。 目前美國參議院正考慮推選伯南克連任美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)（美國央行）主席。盡管伯南克獲得連任沒有多大懸念，但公眾和美國國會(huì)議員對(duì)美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)的批評(píng)聲音數(shù)十年來空前高漲。 美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)對(duì)華爾街的援助招致了共和黨和民主黨兩個(gè)黨派的批評(píng)。一些立法者提議限制美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)制定規(guī)章的權(quán)力，并要求其公開利率決策，接受國會(huì)審計(jì)。 美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)擔(dān)心國會(huì)干預(yù)其政策制定會(huì)危及其頑強(qiáng)捍衛(wèi)的獨(dú)立性。 “拉斯穆森報(bào)告”本月開展的一項(xiàng)民調(diào)顯示，僅有22%的公眾支持伯南克連任美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)主席，41%的人表示反對(duì)。盡管如此，伯南克仍然受到華爾街和很多立法者的支持。 前美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)理事、現(xiàn)任Soleil證券公司高級(jí)經(jīng)濟(jì)顧問的萊利?格拉姆利說：“伯南克把我們從懸崖邊挽救了回來，使我們沒有墜入深淵。” 但共和黨參議員吉姆?邦寧認(rèn)為，《時(shí)代》雜志的這一選擇是在褒獎(jiǎng)“失敗”。邦寧是針對(duì)美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)最尖銳的批評(píng)人士之一。 邦寧在一份聲明中說：“如果不是伯南克主席失職，我們的市場如今面臨的很多問題都可以避免。” 《時(shí)代》之所以評(píng)選56歲的伯南克為今年的年度人物，是因?yàn)樗麘{借其富有創(chuàng)造力的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)能力幫助美國經(jīng)濟(jì)走上了經(jīng)濟(jì)復(fù)蘇的道路，盡管他和其他決策者仍在為高達(dá)10%的失業(yè)率而擔(dān)憂。 相關(guān)閱讀 9家核心政府機(jī)構(gòu) 美聯(lián)儲(chǔ)最不得民心 （中國日?qǐng)?bào)網(wǎng)英語點(diǎn)津 Julie 編輯蔡姍姍） |
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Vocabulary: mild-mannered：behaving in or having a mild or gentle manner（溫和的） second-guess：to use hindsight in criticizing or correcting（質(zhì)疑，事后勸告） scant：barely sufficient in amount or quantity; not abundant; almost inadequate（不足的，欠缺的） asleep at the switch：failing to perform one's duty, missing an opportunity, etc., because of negligence or inattention（玩忽職守，錯(cuò)過機(jī)會(huì)） |
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