手机APP下载

您现在的位置: 首页 > 英语听力 > 英语视频听力 > 美国政治速成小课堂 > 正文

第11课:总统权力(1)

来源:可可英语 编辑:Magi   可可英语APP下载 |  可可官方微信:ikekenet

This episode of Crash Course is brought to you by Squarespace

本集速成课程是由Squarespace为您带来的
Hello, I'm Craig again and this is Crash Course: Government and Politics
嗨,我是克雷格,这是《政府和政治速成课》
And today, we're gonna talk about the most powerful person in the US
今天,我们要谈谈美国最有权势的人
No, not Chris Hemsworth, although he is powerful, in a physical sense
不,不是克里斯·海姆斯沃斯,虽然他从生理上来说很强大
We're talking about the President of the United States, who right now is Barack Obama
我们谈论的是美国总统,现在的美国总统是贝拉克·奥巴马
But that's the last we'll mention of him specifically
但这是我们最后一次特别提到他
Instead, we'll examine the office of the Presidency and what makes whoever holds the office so powerful
相反,我们将审视总统职位,以及是什么让任何一位总统拥有如此大的权力
We're also gonna talk about what makes him (and so far the President has always been a him) less powerful than you might think
我们还将讨论是什么让他(迄今为止总统一直是男性)没有你想象的那么强大
So you might have noticed a bit of a trend in these episodes that we like to start with what the Constitution says about the branches of Government
所以你可能已经注意到在这些事件中有一种趋势:我们喜欢从宪法对政府部门的描述开始
That's not just because it's what appears on tests or what strict constructionist Justice Scalia would want us to do
不只是因为它出现在测试中或者严格的建构主义法官斯卡利亚希望我们做什么
We start with the Constitution because it gives us a formal description of the branch, in this case the executive, upon which we can build
我们从宪法开始,因为它给了我们一个正式的分支描述,在这个例子中是行政部门,我们可以在它的基础上建立
What do you mean upon which we can build?
你说我们可以在上面建造是什么意思?
That's nonsense
瞎掰
The Constitution is a limited document
宪法是一个有限的文件
It lays the framework and the rules and that's all
它奠定了框架和规则,仅此而已
All this extra stuff is an unconstitutional power grab
所有这些额外的东西都是违宪的权力攫取
Oh, Clone from the Right, I was wondering what happened to you clones
哦,右边克隆,我想知道你怎么了克隆
That's a good point you make
你说得很好
But really the world is a more complicated than it was in 1787, and we need to have a more flexible government
但实际上,与1787年相比,世界更加复杂,我们需要一个更灵活的政府。
The Constitution provides a framework for understanding it, but it needs to change with the times.
宪法为理解宪法提供了一个框架,但它需要与时俱进。
Besides, if the President becomes more powerful than what's suggested in the Constitution, whose fault is that?
此外,如果总统的权力比宪法规定的更大,那是谁的错?
Congress!
国会!
That's who!
那是谁!
Okay clones, we get the picture
克隆人,我们知道了
There's a debate about the role of the Constitution in setting up the government and we’re not gonna solve it today
关于宪法在建立政府中所扮演的角色有一个争论,我们今天不会解决这个问题
For now, we’re gonna start with the Constitution and what it says about the President
现在,我们先从宪法和宪法对总统的评价开始
You win this round, Clone from the Right
你赢了这一轮,右边克隆
All right, let's try to keep those clones in the clone zone going forward?
好吧,我们试着让那些克隆人区域的人继续前进?
Thank you
谢谢
Anyway, as with Congress, the Constitution lays out certain qualifications for the presidency
无论如何,就像国会一样,宪法规定了总统的某些条件
If you want to be President of the US, and I know you do,
如果你想成为美国总统,我知道你想的,
you must be 35 years old, which in the 1780s was actually pretty old
必须达到35岁,在18世纪80年代,这个年龄相当大
You were expected to have moved out of your parents’ house by that point…
那时候你应该已经搬出父母家了……
And you must be a citizen of the US who was born in the United States, or one of its territories
必须是美国公民,出生在美国或美国领土上
The President is not elected directly by the American people
总统不是由美国人民直接选举产生
Yeah, your mind is blown
是啊,你的脑子都乱了
In the Constitution, as originally written, only members of the House of Representatives were directly elected by qualified citizens
在最初的宪法中,只有众议员是由合格公民直接选举产生的
The President is actually chosen by the Electoral College, which is complicated and frustrating for many Americans,
总统实际上是由选举人团选举产生的,这对许多美国人来说既复杂又令人沮丧,
and we’re not gonna go into it now, except to say that the reason it exists is because the Framers didn’t trust the popular vote all that much,
我们现在不打算深入讨论它,只是说它存在的原因是立宪者不太相信普选,
so they built in the Electoral College as a safeguard against the people electing scary demigods or the person they wanted… elected
所以他们建立了选举团制度来防止人们选举恐怖的半人神或者他们想要的人
Some people say this is not particularly democratic, mostly because it's not particularly democratic
有些人说这不是特别民主,主要是因为它不是特别民主
So democratically elected or not, the President is pretty powerful, but he has different categories of power
不管是不是民主选举出来的,总统都很有权力,但他有不同的权力类别
What are they?
他们是什么?
First, he has military powers to send soldiers and planes and ships to do military things
首先,他有军事力量派遣士兵、飞机和船只从事军事活动
He also has judicial powers, in that he appoints federal judges and Supreme Court judges, subject to Senate approval, of course
他还拥有司法权,任命联邦法官和最高法院法官,当然,这需要得到参议院的批准
He’s the nation’s chief diplomat, which is the source of his foreign policy power
他是美国的首席外交官,这也是他外交政策力量的源泉
The president can also propose laws, although he has to get a Congressmen or Senator to actually introduce them into Congress
总统也可以提出法律建议,尽管他必须让国会议员或参议员真正将其引入国会
This is a legislative power
这是立法权
And since he’s the chief executive, he also has executive power, which means he's supposed to to ensure that the laws are carried out
因为他是首席执行官,所以他也有行政权,这意味着他应该确保法律的执行
This is his most far reaching power, probably because it’s the least well defined
这是他最深远的力量,可能因为它是最不明确的
Executive power is a pretty big deal, so we’re gonna give that its own episode
行政权力是一件很重要的事情,所以我们会单独用一集来描述它
Another way to describe the president’s powers is as either formal or informal
另一种描述总统权力的方式是职位权力或个人权利
Formal powers are the ones we can find in the Constitution itself, mainly in Article 2
职位权力是我们能在宪法中找到的权力,主要在第2条中
The informal powers come either from Congress or the President himself,
个人权利要么来自国会,要么来自总统本人,

crash1018.png

but for now, let’s look at the formal powers, which like those given to Congress, are also known as expressed powers

但现在,让我们来看看职位权力,这些权力和国会的权力一样,也是被表达出来的权力
Let go to the Thought Bubble
让我们进入思想泡泡
Unfortunately, presidents don’t derive their powers from the sun, like Superman
不幸的是,总统不像超人那样从太阳那里获得力量
Or from exposure to radiation like the Fantastic Four or the Hulk
或者是像《神奇四侠》或《绿巨人》那样暴露在辐射中
The powers come from the constitution, which again, unfortunately doesn’t have any super natural or mystical power, although some people like to think it does
权力来自宪法,不幸的是,宪法没有任何超自然或神秘的权力,尽管有些人喜欢这样认为
The first power given to the President in the Constitution is that he is the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, which at the time was just the Army and Navy, since there were no airplanes
宪法赋予总统的第一项权力是,他是武装部队的总指挥,当时军队只是陆军和海军,因为当时没有飞机
There's a reason that this should be the first power
这是第一项的原因
If there's one thing that almost everyone can agree on, it's that the first job of government is to keep the citizens safe, especially from foreign invasion
如果有一件事是几乎每个人都同意的,那就是政府的第一份工作是保护公民的安全,特别是防止外国入侵
The US has had a lot of generals become president: Washington, Jackson, William Henry Harrison, Taylor, Grant, Eisenhower, and many others have served in the military,
美国有很多将军当上了总统:华盛顿、杰克逊、威廉·亨利·哈里森、泰勒、格兰特、艾森豪威尔和其他许多人都曾在军队服役,
but only one president has led the US troops in the field while he was President, and that was George Washington
但只有一位总统在他担任总统期间领导了美国军队,那就是乔治·华盛顿
The Whiskey Rebellion
威士忌暴乱
That's something worth fighting over
这是值得一争的
The President has diplomatic powers, although he doesn't actually do most of the diplomacy
总统拥有外交权力,尽管他实际上并没有进行大部分外交活动
The President has the power to make treaties, which are mostly written by the State Department officials, but he takes credit
总统有权制定条约,这些条约大部分是由国务院官员起草的,但他也有功劳
He appoints ambassadors and those State Department officials I just mentioned
他任命大使和我刚才提到的国务院官员
His most visible foreign policy power is to receive ambassadors, which not only makes for great photo opportunities - selfie!
他最引人注目的外交政策权力是接见大使,这不仅给他提供了绝佳的拍照机会——自拍!
But also is a significant power because receiving an ambassador effectively means recognition of that ambassador's country's existence
但同时也是一个重要的力量,因为接见大使实际上意味着承认大使国家的存在
So the President can actually legitimize a nation-state
所以总统实际上可以使一个民族国家合法化
Maybe he does have superpowers
也许他有超能力
The Constitution requires that the President from time to time inform Congress of the state of the Union
宪法要求总统不时地将联邦的状况通知国会
This takes the form of an annual State of the Union address
这是以年度国情咨文的形式出现的
Historically, presidents did this in writing, although George Washington made a formal address
从历史上看,总统们都是通过书面形式做到这一点的,尽管乔治·华盛顿发表了正式讲话
We have Woodrow Wilson to thank for reviving the practice of making the State of the Union an actual speech, which now appears on television early each year
我们要感谢伍德罗·威尔逊总统,因为他恢复了把国情咨文演讲变成现实的做法。如今,国情咨文演讲每年都会提前在电视上播出
This may not seem like much of a power, but the State of the Union is a chance for the President to set a policy agenda for the next year, and it can put some pressure on Congress to make policy
这似乎算不上什么权力,但国情咨文是总统为明年制定政策议程的一个机会,它可能会给国会带来一些压力,迫使他们制定政策
Thanks, Thought Bubble
谢谢,思想泡泡
So the President has a couple of other powers we've already talked about
总统还有一些我们已经讨论过的权力
The President has a form of legislative power to veto laws passed by Congress
总统有权否决国会通过的法律
He also has the power to convene Congress into special sessions
他还有权召集国会召开特别会议
The President also has judicial powers
总统也有司法权
He can appoint judges, but only with the consent of the Senate
他可以任命法官,但必须得到参议院的同意
He does have the power to grant pardons and reprieves, which doesn't sound like a big deal, unless you're in jail or threatened by criminal prosecution, in which case it's a very big deal
他有权赦免和缓刑,这听起来没什么大不了的,除非你被关在监狱里或者受到刑事起诉的威胁,在这种情况下,这可是件大事
So there you have it
就是这样
Those are the formal constitutional powers of the President of the United States
这些是美国总统的正式宪法权力
You may have noticed that there aren't all that many of them
你可能已经注意到它们并不多
Which is kind of the point
这是什么意思呢
The framers of the Constitution wanted a limited government
宪法的制定者想要一个有限的政府
One that couldn't oppress the people
一个不能压迫人民的政府
They were especially afraid of a strong executive, like a king, in charge of a standing army, so they deliberately tried to curtail his powers by not giving him very many
他们特别害怕一个强大的执行官,比如一个国王,掌管着一支常备军,所以他们故意不给他太多权力来削弱他的权力
But as we'll see in the next few episodes, over the course of the last 240 years or so, the powers of the President have expanded far beyond what framers probably envisioned
但是在接下来的几集里我们会看到,在过去240年左右的时间里,总统的权力已经远远超出了制宪者的想象
Thanks for watching
感谢收看
I'll see you next week
下周见
I can feel my powers expanding
我能感觉到我的力量在膨胀
Is this radioactive coffee?
这是放射性咖啡吗?
Crash Course Government and Politics is produced in association with PBS Digital Studios
政府与政治速成班是与PBS数字工作室联合制作的
Support for Crash Course: US Government comes from Voqal
美国政府对速成课程的支持来自Voqal
Voqal supports nonprofits that use technology and media to advance social equity
Voqal支持利用技术和媒体促进社会公平的非营利组织
Learn more about their mission and initiatives at Voqal.org
在voqal.org了解更多关于他们的使命和倡议
Crash Course was made with all of these super heroes
速成班是由这些超级英雄们组成的
Thanks for watching
感谢收看

重点单词   查看全部解释    
certain ['sə:tn]

想一想再看

adj. 确定的,必然的,特定的
pron.

 
source [sɔ:s]

想一想再看

n. 发源地,来源,原始资料

 
diplomat ['dipləmæt]

想一想再看

adj. 外交官,外交家 n. 外交家

 
curtail [kə:'teil]

想一想再看

vt. 缩减,削减,截短

联想记忆
informal [in'fɔ:məl]

想一想再看

adj. 非正式的,不拘形式的

 
complicated ['kɔmplikeitid]

想一想再看

adj. 复杂的,难懂的
动词complica

 
description [di'skripʃən]

想一想再看

n. 描写,描述,说明书,作图,类型

联想记忆
invasion [in'veiʒən]

想一想再看

n. 侵入,侵略

联想记忆
legitimize [li'dʒitimaiz]

想一想再看

vt. 使合法,使可接受

 
setting ['setiŋ]

想一想再看

n. 安装,放置,周围,环境,(为诗等谱写的)乐曲

 

    阅读本文的人还阅读了:
  • 第9课:法案如何成为法律 2018-09-25
  • 第10课:国会的决定 2018-10-01
  • 第12课:总统权力(2) 2018-10-29
  • 第13课:国会代表团 2018-11-07
  • 第14课:总统如何管理政府 2018-11-16
  • 发布评论我来说2句

      最新文章

      可可英语官方微信(微信号:ikekenet)

      每天向大家推送短小精悍的英语学习资料.

      添加方式1.扫描上方可可官方微信二维码。
      添加方式2.搜索微信号ikekenet添加即可。