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0With Another Government on the Brink of Collapse, Is France the New Italy?
There is a country in the European Union saddled with a massive debt pile, rising borrowing costs and governments that collapse in a matter of months—and it’s not Italy.
France, rather, is sliding into a morass that once plagued its southern neighbor. If French Prime Minister François Bayrou loses a Sept. 8 confidence vote on his efforts to rein in the country’s budget deficit, he will become the fourth head of government to lose his job in a year and a half.
For France, pulling out of the spiral is hard because its National Assembly, the lower house of its parliament, is divided into factions, each with opposing fiscal priorities and enough votes to shift the balance of power.
Macron pre-empted the parliamentary fight with one of the most consequential moves of his tenure: He dissolved parliament and called snap elections. The summer election resulted in an unprecedented splintering of votes in the National Assembly. Without a clear majority in place, any piece of legislation, including the annual budget, became a referendum on the government.
Bayrou outraged the country with a plan to boost economic output by eliminating two national holidays: Easter Monday and May 8, when France celebrates the surrender of Nazi Germany to the Allies.
Jordan Bardella, leader of the far-right National Rally, branded the idea “a direct attack on our history, our roots—against working French.”
on the brink of 在……的边缘，即将陷入某种危机
on the brink of bankruptcy 在破产边缘
saddle somebody with something 使负担重担或者困难
The company is saddled with debt. 公司负债累累。
a massive debt pile 债务大山
pile n. 一摞，一堆
I've got a pile of things to do today. 我今天有一大堆事情要做。
in a matter of + 时间 只用了、不超过（多少时间）
It cooks in a matter of minutes. 它只需要几分钟就能煮好。
rather 英 [ˈrɑːðə(r)] 美 [ˈræðər] adv. 更准确地说（more accurately, more exactly）
morass 英 [məˈræs] 美 [məˈræs] n. 沼泽，困境
Many young adults feel they are sliding into a morass of nihilism. 许多年轻人觉得自己正在陷入虚无主义的泥潭。
plague 英 [pleɪɡ] 美 [pleɪɡ] v. 不断袭击，困扰；n. 瘟疫
Regret plagued the old man in his final years. 悔恨侵扰着老人最后的岁月。
pull out of the spiral 摆脱恶性循环
spiral n. 螺旋的形状
downward spiral 螺旋着往下走，不断恶化
Therapy helped her pull out of the spiral of self-doubt. 心理治疗帮助她走出了自我怀疑的恶性循环。
pre-empt 英 [ˌpriː ˈempt] 美 [ˌpriː ˈempt] v. 抢在之前行动，为避免某事先发制人
She spoke quickly to pre-empt any objections. 她抢先发言，以免别人提出反对。
tenure 英 [ˈtenjə(r)] 美 [ˈtenjər] n. 任期
snap election 提前举行的，临时宣布的选举
snap adj. 匆忙的，不加准备的；v. 突然折断，啪的一声（强调突然和临时）
make snap decisions 匆忙作决定
unprecedented 英 [ʌnˈpresɪdentɪd] 美 [ʌnˈpresɪdentɪd] adj. 没有先例的，前所未有的
splintering of votes 票数分散
splinter v. 裂成碎片
The glass splintered into a thousand tiny pieces. 玻璃裂成了上千个小碎片。
