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Biden and McCarthy Reach No Consensus as a Possible Default Looms
违约迫在眉睫，但拜登和麦卡锡未能达成共识
President Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy emerged from a critical meeting at the White House on Tuesday with no consensus on how to end their impasse over the federal debt and spending just weeks before the nation is set to default on its obligations for the first time.
周二，拜登总统和众议院议长凯文·麦卡锡在白宫举行了一次关键会议，二人就如何结束他们在联邦债务和支出问题上的僵局未能达成共识，而几周后，美国可能首次出现债务违约。
With the economy hanging in the balance, the two leaders stuck to their opening positions, with Mr. Biden demanding that Congress raise the debt ceiling unconditionally to avoid a default and Mr. McCarthy insisting such a move be accompanied by serious spending restraints.
在经济前景不甚明朗的情况下，两位领导人都坚持最初的立场，拜登要求国会无条件提高债务上限，以避免违约，而麦卡锡则坚持，此举必须伴随着严格的支出限制。
But the two agreed to have aides meet later in the day and to reconvene themselves on Friday.
但两人同意让助手们在当天晚些时候会面，并在周五重新开会。
The session in the Oval Office, the first such meeting in three months between the Democratic president and Republican speaker, was the opening act in a drama expected to play out over the next few weeks as the nation hurtles toward a deadline around June 1 before running out of authority to pay its debts.
这次在椭圆办公室举行的会议是民主党总统和共和党议长三个月来首次举行这样的会晤，这也是将在未来几周上演的一场戏剧性事件的开幕，因为美国很快将迎来6月1日左右的最后期限，超过这个日期，美国将耗尽其借款还债的权限。
Neither side expected the meeting to produce a breakthrough, and it did not. Instead, it was a chance for both camps to lay down markers for the make-or-break debate.
双方都没有期望这次会议能取得突破，结果也确实没有。相反，这次会议只是让两个阵营为这场不成则败的争论亮明自己的态度。
"I made clear during our meeting that default is not an option," Mr. Biden said after the session in the Oval Office. "I repeated that time and again. America is not a deadbeat nation. We pay our bills and avoiding default is a basic duty of the United States Congress."
"我在会议期间明确表示，没有违约这个选择。"拜登在椭圆办公室的会议结束后说，"我一遍又一遍地重复这一点：美国不是一个赖账的国家。我们会还钱，而避免违约是美国国会的一项基本职责。"
But he added: "I'm prepared to begin a separate discussion about my budget and spending priorities but not under the threat of default."
但他补充说："我准备开始单独讨论预算和支出优先事项的问题，但不是在面临违约的威胁下进行讨论。"
Meeting with reporters as he left the White House, Mr. McCarthy said the two sides remained at loggerheads.
麦卡锡在离开白宫接受记者采访时表示，双方仍然争执不下。
"I didn't see any new movement," he said. He added that he had asked Mr. Biden "numerous times" if there were places in the federal budget where they could find cuts. "They wouldn't give me any," he said.
"我没有看到任何新的动作。"他表示。他补充说，他曾"无数次"询问拜登，联邦政府预算中还有没有可以削减开支的地方。"但他们说没有。"他表示。
