The news this past week, including this morning’s news about Citigroup, has made it even more clear that we are facing an economic crisis of historic proportions. Our financial markets are under stress. New home purchases in October were the lowest in half-a-century. Recently, more than half-a-million jobless claims were filed, the highest in 18 years. And if we do not act swiftly and boldly, most experts now believe that we could lose millions of jobs next year. 过去一周的消息，包括今晨关于花旗集团的消息，更加清楚地表明我们正面临着一场历史性规模的经济危机。我们的金融市场正承受着压力。十月份的新房购买量为半个世纪以来最低。最近，申请失业救济的人数超过五十万，为十八年来最高。如果我们不迅速而果断地采取行动，多数专家现在认为我们明年可能会失去数百万个就业岗位。
While we can’t underestimate the challenges that we face, we also can’t underestimate our capacity to overcome them, to summon that spirit of determination and optimism that has always defined us, and to move forward in a new direction to create new jobs, reform our financial system, and fuel long-term economic growth. 虽然我们不能低估所面临的挑战，但同样不能低估我们克服这些挑战的能力，不能低估我们召唤那种始终定义着我们这个民族的决心与乐观精神的能力，不能低估我们沿着新方向前进、创造新的就业岗位、改革我们的金融体系、推动长期经济增长的能力。
We know this won’t be easy, and it won’t happen overnight. We’ll need to bring together the best minds in America to guide us, and that is what I’ve sought to do in assembling my economic team. I’ve sought leaders who could offer both sound judgment and fresh thinking, both a depth of experience and a wealth of bold, new ideas, and most of all who share my fundamental belief that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street without a thriving Main Street, that in this country we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. 我们深知这并非易事，也不会一蹴而就。我们需要汇聚美国最优秀的头脑来指引我们，而这正是我在组建经济团队时所致力做到的。我寻求的领导者，既要能提供稳健的判断又要能带来全新的思维，既要有深厚的经验又要有大量大胆的新想法，最重要的是，他们要与我共有这样一个根本信念：没有繁荣的实体经济，就不可能有繁荣的华尔街；在这个国家，我们作为一个民族、作为一个整体同兴衰、共命运。
Today, Vice President-elect Biden and I are pleased to announce the nomination of four individuals who meet these criteria to lead our economic team: Timothy Geithner, as secretary of treasury; Lawrence Summers, as the director of our National Economic Council; Christina Romer, as chair of the Council of Economic Advisers; and Melody Barnes, as director of domestic -- the Domestic Policy Council. 今天，当选副总统拜登与我非常荣幸地宣布，提名四位符合上述标准的人选来领导我们的经济团队：蒂莫西·盖特纳出任财政部长；劳伦斯·萨默斯出任国家经济委员会主任；克里斯蒂娜·罗默出任经济顾问委员会主席；以及梅洛迪·巴恩斯出任国内政策委员会主任。
Having served in senior roles at Treasury, the IMF, and the New York Fed, Tim Geithner offers not just extensive experience shaping economic policy and managing financial markets, he also has an unparalleled understanding of our current economic crisis in all of its depth, complexity, and urgency. Tim will waste no time getting up to speed. He will start his first day on the job with a unique insight into the failures of today’s markets and a clear vision of the steps we must take to revive them. 蒂莫西·盖特纳曾在财政部、国际货币基金组织和纽约联邦储备银行担任高级职务，他不仅拥有制定经济政策和监管金融市场的丰富经验，对我们当前经济危机的深度、复杂性和紧迫性也有着无与伦比的理解。蒂莫西将毫不迟延地进入角色。他在上任的第一天就将凭借独到的见解洞察当今市场的失败之处，并对我们必须采取的复兴步骤有着清晰的愿景。
The reality is that the economic crisis we face is no longer just an American crisis; it’s a global crisis. And we will need to reach out to countries around the world to craft a global response. Tim’s extensive international experience makes him uniquely suited to do that work. 现实是，我们所面临的经济危机已不再仅仅是美国的危机，而是一场全球性危机。我们需要与世界各国携手，共同制定全球性的应对方案。蒂莫西丰富的国际经验使他尤为胜任这项工作。
Growing up partly in Africa and having lived and worked throughout Asia, having served as undersecretary of the treasury for international affairs, one of the many roles in the international arena, and having studied both Chinese and Japanese, Tim understands the language of today’s international markets in more ways than one. Tim served with distinction under both Democrats and Republicans and has a long history of working comfortably and as an honest broker on both sides of the aisle. 蒂莫西的童年有一部分在非洲度过，曾在亚洲各地生活和工作，曾任负责国际事务的财政部副部长（这是他在国际舞台上担任的众多职务之一），并学习过中文和日文，因此他从多个层面理解当今国际市场的语言。蒂莫西在民主党和共和党执政期间均有出色表现，长期作为诚实的中间人，与两党都能融洽合作。
With stellar performances and outstanding results at every stage of his career, Tim has earned the confidence and respect of business, financial, and community leaders, members of Congress, and political leaders around the world. And I know he will do so once again as America’s next treasury secretary, the chief economic spokesman for my Administration. 凭借在职业生涯每个阶段的卓越表现和杰出成果，蒂莫西赢得了商界、金融界和社区领袖、国会议员以及全球政治领袖的信任与尊敬。我知道，作为美国的下一任财政部长、本届政府的首席经济发言人，他将再次赢得这样的信任与尊敬。
Now, like Tim, Larry Summers also brings a singular combination of skill, intellect, and experience to the role he will play in our Administration. As undersecretary, deputy secretary, and then secretary of the treasury, Larry helped guide us through several major international financial crises and was a central architect of the policies that led to the longest economic expansion in American history, with record surpluses, rising family incomes, and more than 20 million new jobs. 与蒂莫西一样，劳伦斯·萨默斯也将为他在本届政府中扮演的角色带来一种独特的技能、才智与经验的结合。在先后担任财政部副部长、常务副部长和部长期间，劳伦斯协助我们度过了几场重大的国际金融危机，并是缔造美国历史上最长经济扩张期政策的核心设计师之一——这一时期创下了创纪录的财政盈余、不断增长的家庭收入以及超过两千万的新增就业岗位。
He also championed a range of measures, from tax credits to enhanced lending programs to consumer financial protections, that greatly benefited middle-income families. 他还推动了一系列措施，从税收抵免到加强贷款项目再到消费者金融保护，这些都极大地惠及了中等收入家庭。
As a thought leader, Larry has urged us to confront the problems of income inequality and the middle-class squeeze, consistently arguing that the key to a strong economy is a strong, vibrant, growing middle class. This idea is at the core of my own economic philosophy and will be the foundation of all of my economic policies. 作为一位思想领袖，劳伦斯一直敦促我们正视收入不平等和中产阶级受挤压的问题，他始终坚持认为，强大经济的关键在于一个强大、充满活力且不断壮大的中产阶级。这一理念正是我个人经济哲学的核心，也将成为我所有经济政策的基石。
And as one of the great economic minds of our time, Larry has earned a global reputation for being able to cut to the heart of the most complex and novel policy challenges. With respect to both our current financial crisis and other pressing economic issues of our time, his thinking, writing, and speaking have set the terms of the debate. I’m glad he will be by my side, playing the critical role of coordinating my Administration’s economic policy in the White House, and I will rely heavily on his advice as we navigate the uncharted waters of this economic crisis. 作为我们这个时代最杰出的经济思想家之一，劳伦斯在全球享有盛誉，因为他能够直击最为复杂和新颖的政策挑战的核心。无论是就我们当前的金融危机，还是就我们这个时代其他紧迫的经济问题而言，他的思考、著述和演讲都为相关辩论设定了基调。我很高兴他将在我身边，在白宫承担协调本届政府经济政策的关键角色；在驾驭这场经济危机这片未知水域时，我将高度依赖他的建言。
As one of the most expert people in America on economic crises and how to solve them, my next nominee, Christina Romer, will bring a critically needed perspective to her work as chair of my Council of Economic Advisors. Christina is both a leading -- both a leading macroeconomist and a leading economic historian, perhaps best known for her work on America’s recovery from the Great Depression and the robust economic expansion that followed. 作为美国在应对经济危机及其解决之道方面最具专长的人士之一，我的下一位被提名人克里斯蒂娜·罗默，将以其担任经济顾问委员会主席的工作，带来一种迫切需要的视角。克里斯蒂娜既是一位杰出的宏观经济学家，也是一位杰出的经济史学家，她或许最为人知的研究是美国从大萧条中复苏以及随后的强劲经济扩张。
Since 2003, she’s been co-director of the National Bureau of Economic Research Monetary Economics program. She’s also a member of the bureau’s Business Cycle Dating Committee, the body charged with officially determining whether a recession has started and ended, experience which will serve her well as she advises me on our current economic challenges. Christina has done groundbreaking research on many of the topics our Administration will confront, from tax policy to fighting recessions. 自2003年起，她一直担任国家经济研究局货币经济学项目的联合主任。她还是该局经济周期测定委员会的成员，该委员会负责正式判定经济衰退的开始与结束，这一经验将有助于她在为我提供当前经济挑战的建议时发挥作用。克里斯蒂娜在诸多本届政府将要应对的议题上做过开创性研究，从税收政策到抗击衰退。
And her clear-eyed, independent analyses have received praise from both conservative and liberal thinkers alike. I look forward to her wise counsel in the White House. 她那清醒而独立的分析同样获得了保守派和自由派思想家的赞誉。我期待她在白宫为我提供睿智的建言。
Finally, we know that rebuilding our economy will require action on a great variety of fronts: from education and health care to energy and Social Security. Without sound policies in these areas, we can neither enjoy sustained economic growth nor realize our full potential as a people. So I am extraordinarily pleased that Melody Barnes, one of the most respected policy experts in America, will serve as my director of domestic -- the Domestic Policy Council, and that she will be working hand in hand with my economic policy team to chart a course to economic recovery. 最后，我们深知，重建我们的经济需要在诸多领域采取行动：从教育、医疗到能源和社会保障。如果这些领域没有健全的政策，我们既无法享受持续的经济增长，也无法实现我们作为一个民族的全部潜力。因此，我非常高兴地宣布，美国最受尊敬的政策专家之一梅洛迪·巴恩斯将出任我的国内政策委员会主任，并将与我的经济政策团队携手合作，为经济复苏规划路径。
An integral part of that course will be health care reform, and she will work closely with my secretary of health and human services on that issue. 这一路径不可或缺的一部分将是医疗改革，她将与我的卫生与公众服务部长就此问题密切合作。
As executive vice president for policy at the Center of -- at the Center for American Progress, Melody directed a network of policy experts dedicated to finding solutions for struggling middle-class families. She also served as chief counsel to the great Senator Ted Kennedy on the state -- Senate Judiciary Committee, working on issues ranging from crime to immigration to bankruptcy, and fighting tirelessly to protect civil rights, women’s rights, and religious freedom. 在担任美国进步中心政策执行副总裁期间，梅洛迪领导了一个由政策专家组成的网络，致力于为苦苦挣扎的中产阶级家庭寻找解决方案。她还曾担任伟大的参议员泰德·肯尼迪在参议院司法委员会的首席顾问，处理从犯罪、移民到破产等各种议题，并不懈地为保护公民权利、妇女权利和宗教自由而奋斗。
Melody’s brilliant legal mind and her long experience working to secure the liberties on which this nation was founded, as well as to secure the opportunities for those who’ve been left behind, make her a perfect fit for DPC director. 梅洛迪睿智的法律头脑，以及她长期以来为捍卫这个国家立国之本所载的自由、为那些被落在后面的人争取机会而工作所积累的丰富经验，使她成为国内政策委员会主任的完美人选。
I'm grateful that Tim, Larry, Christina, and Melody have accepted my nomination, and I am looking forward to working closely with them in the months ahead. That work starts today, because the truth is, we do not have a minute to waste. Right now, our economy is trapped in a vicious cycle: The turmoil on Wall Street means a new round of belt-tightening for families and businesses on Main Street, and as folks produce less and consume less, that just deepens the problems in our financial markets. These extraordinary stresses on our financial system require extraordinary policy responses. 我感谢蒂莫西、劳伦斯、克里斯蒂娜和梅洛迪接受我的提名，我也期待在未来的几个月里与他们密切合作。这项工作从今天就开始了，因为事实是，我们一刻也不能浪费。眼下，我们的经济正陷入一个恶性循环：华尔街的动荡意味着实体经济中的家庭和企业将迎来新一轮的紧缩开支，而人们生产得越少、消费得越少，又会进一步加剧我们金融市场的问题。我们的金融体系所承受的这些非同寻常的压力，需要非同寻常的政策回应。
And my Administration will honor the public commitments made by the current Administration to address this crisis. 本届政府将履行现任政府为应对这场危机所作出的公开承诺。
Further, beyond any immediate actions we may take, we need a recovery plan for both Wall Street and Main Street, a plan that stabilizes our financial system and gets credit flowing again, while at the same time addressing our growing foreclosure crisis, helping our struggling auto industry, and creating and saving 2.5 million jobs, jobs rebuilding our infrastructure, our roads, our bridges, modernizing our schools, and creating the clean energy infrastructure of the 21st century. 此外，除了我们可能采取的任何即时行动之外，我们还需要一份既面向华尔街又面向实体经济的复苏计划，一份既能稳定我们的金融体系、让信贷重新流动起来，又能同时应对日益严重的止赎危机、援助陷入困境的汽车工业，并创造和保住250万个就业岗位的计划——这些岗位将用于重建我们的基础设施、道路和桥梁，实现学校的现代化，以及打造21世纪的清洁能源基础设施。
Because at this moment, we need to restore both confidence in the markets and restore confidence of middle-class families, who find themselves working harder, earning less, and falling further and further behind. 因为此时此刻，我们既要恢复对市场的信心，也要恢复中产阶级家庭的信心——他们发现自己工作得更辛苦、收入更少，却越来越落后。
I’ve asked my economic team to develop recommendations for this plan and to consult with Congress, the current Administration, and the Federal Reserve on immediate economic developments over the next two months. I’ve requested that they brief me on these matters on a daily basis. And in the coming weeks, I will provide the American people and the incoming Congress with an overview of their initial recommendations. It is my hope that the new Congress will begin work on an aggressive economic recovery plan when they convene in early January so that our Administration can hit the ground running. 我已经要求我的经济团队为这一计划制定建议，并在接下来的两个月内就即时经济发展态势与国会、现任政府以及联邦储备委员会进行磋商。我要求他们就这些事项每日向我汇报。在接下来的几周内，我将向美国人民和新当选的国会介绍他们初步建议的概要。我希望新一届国会在一月初召开时就能着手制定一项积极的经济复苏计划，以便本届政府一上任就能迅速展开工作。
With our economy in distress, we cannot hesitate and we cannot delay. Our families can’t afford to keep on waiting and hoping for a solution. They can’t afford to watch another month of unpaid bills pile up, another semester of tuition slip out of reach, another month where, instead of saving for retirement, they’re dipping into their savings just to get by. And I want to repeat: This will not be easy. There are no shortcuts or quick fixes to this crisis, which has been many years in the making, and the economy is likely to get worse before it gets better. 在经济陷入困境之际，我们不能犹豫，也不能拖延。我们的家庭承受不起继续等待和寄望于解决方案的代价。他们承受不起看着又一个月的未付账单堆积如山，看着又一个学期的学费变得遥不可及，看着又一个月——他们非但无法为退休储蓄，反而要动用积蓄才能勉强度日。我要再次重申：这绝非易事。这场酝酿多年的危机不存在捷径或速效之策，而且经济在好转之前可能还会进一步恶化。
Full recovery will not happen immediately. And to make the investments we need, we’ll have to scour our federal budget, line by line, and make meaningful cuts and sacrifices, as well, something I’ll be discussing further tomorrow. 全面复苏不会立即实现。而要进行我们所需的各项投资，我们将不得不逐条审查联邦预算，并作出实质性的削减与牺牲——这一点我明天还会进一步讨论。
Despite all of this, I am hopeful about the future. I have full confidence in the wisdom and ingenuity of my economic team and in the hard work, courage, and sacrifice of the American people. And most of all, I believe deeply in the resilience and the spirit of this nation. I know we can work our way out of this crisis because we’ve done it before. And I know we will succeed once again if we put aside partisanship and politics and work together. 尽管如此，我对未来仍充满希望。我对经济团队的智慧与才干、对美国人民的辛勤工作、勇气与牺牲精神充满信心。最重要的是，我深深相信这个民族的韧性与精神。我知道我们能够走出这场危机，因为我们曾经做到过。我也知道，只要我们抛开党派之争和政治算计、携手合作，我们就必将再次成功。
That’s exactly what I intend to do as President of the United States. 这正是我作为美利坚合众国总统所决心要做到的。