一般教書演説 再選へ意欲を見せたオバマ氏

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Jan. 27, 2012)
Obama shows determination to win reelection
一般教書演説　再選へ意欲を見せたオバマ氏（1月26日付・読売社説）

U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday delivered the annual State of the Union policy address, which made clear his confrontational stance against Republicans in the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
　再選に向けて、共和党との対決姿勢を際立たせた演説だった。

In his address, he cited sustainable economic growth and help for the middle class as top-priority issues.
　オバマ米大統領は、一般教書演説で、持続的な成長と中間所得層への支援を最優先課題にあげた。

Apparently determined to win reelection later this year, he said he would aim to rejuvenate the economy by revitalizing the manufacturing sector at home, developing natural gas and other domestic sources of energy, improving the skill of American workers and creating more jobs.
　国内製造業の復活や、天然ガスなど国産エネルギーの開発、米労働者の技術向上と雇用創出などで経済の再生を目指すとし、再選へ強い意気込みを見せた。

Although the U.S. economy has been picking up, there is a strong sense of uncertainty about its future prospects. 　米国経済は持ち直してきたとはいえ、景気の先行き不透明感は強い。

Housing prices remain low, while the jobless rate hovers around 8.5 percent.
住宅価格は低迷し、失業率は８・５％に高止まりしている。

Obama's approval ratings remain in the lower half of the 40 percent range, primarily due to widening income inequality.
　大統領の支持率が４０％台前半にとどまっているのも、所得格差が広がっているのが原因だ。

With the president having been unable to give the people their fair share of the fruits of economic recovery, despite his promise to bring about "change," prospects for his reelection are becoming murky, with the light turning to the yellow of caution.
　「チェンジ（変化）」を約束しながら、景気回復の果実を与えられない現状では、大統領再選に黄信号がともる。

===

Frustration with Republicans

No matter how much he wants to implement employment measures and other economic stimuli, they cannot be realized without congressional support.
　雇用対策などの景気刺激策を打ち出そうにも、議会の支持なしには実行できない。

In Congress, the rivalry between the Republicans and the Democrats has been intensifying, making it ever more difficult for bills vital for implementing policies to be passed.
その議会では、共和党と民主党の対立が激化し、政策遂行に不可欠な法案が通りにくくなっている。

In his speech, Obama said he would fight "with action" those who obstruct the realization of his policies, which can be taken to indicate his strong frustration at the Republicans who dominate the House of Representatives as the majority party.
　大統領が、一般教書演説で、政策の実現を阻むものには「行動で戦う」と宣言したのは、多数派として下院を支配する共和党への強いいらだちがあるからだろう。

One important agenda item for his administration in the days ahead is tax system reform.
　大統領にとっての今後の重要な課題の一つは、税制改革だ。

In his speech, Obama called for higher taxes on wealthy people who pay a lower tax rate than middle-income earners, while also making efforts to trim social security spending.
　一般教書で、大統領は社会保障費の歳出削減に努める一方で、中間所得層よりも低い税率で納税している富裕層については、増税しなければならない、と訴えた。

Obama was apparently conscious of the fact that wealthy Mitt Romney, a former Massachusetts governor and one of the leading contenders for the Republican presidential nomination, has been criticized for paying a tax rate of only 14 percent on the millions of dollars he made in 2010.
　共和党の有力大統領候補の一人で、資産家のロムニー前マサチューセッツ州知事が、課税率がわずか１４％だったと批判を浴びたことも意識したに違いない。

Romney paid a lower tax rate than many Americans do because of the preferential taxation of investment income compared to earned income. But Obama also intends to target Republicans who have consistently opposed tax hikes for the wealthy.
　投資による所得への税率が、勤労所得よりも優遇されているためだが、大統領には、富裕層への増税にも一貫して反対する共和党を標的にする狙いがある。

===

Japan's stake in outcome

While the race for the Republican presidential nomination advances, the presidential election will also go into full swing from now on.
　共和党の候補選びが進み、これから大統領選も本格化する。

The future course of the U.S. economy will have a strong impact on the Japanese economy.
米国経済の行方は日本経済にも大きく影響する。

We would like to pay close attention to the verbal battle regarding the economic rejuvenation during the presidential election campaign.
大統領選での、経済再生を巡る論戦を注視したい。

In the area of diplomacy and national security, Obama expressed once again his national defense strategy, which emphasizes Asia.
　外交・安全保障分野で、大統領は、アジアを重視する国防戦略を改めて示した。

As part of the fiscal deficit reduction, the United States will cut defense spending by about 500 billion dollars (about 38 trillion yen) over the next 10 years.
　財政赤字削減の一環で、米国は国防費を１０年間で約５０００億ドル（約３８兆円）削減する。

Yet if Congress fails to reach an accord on concrete measures to cut the deficit by more than 1 trillion dollars within this year, more drastic budget cut will be made.
だが、年内に１兆ドル超の財政赤字削減の具体策が議会で合意できなければ、さらに大なたがふるわれる。

Such a development will have a serious impact on the national security of Japan.
　それは、日本の安全保障に重大な影響を及ぼす。

We should also pay attention to the battle of words regarding deficit reduction.
財政赤字削減の論議の行方も注目したい。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 26, 2012)
（2012年1月26日01時13分 読売新聞）