中新网评：美国众议长选举“连续剧”暴露美式民主痼疾******
中新网北京1月9日电(蒋鲤)在15轮投票表决后，美国众议院议长选举这场“连续剧”终于落下帷幕，众议院共和党领袖凯文·麦卡锡最终成功当选第55任美国众议院议长。这是美国国会过去164年来耗时最久的一次议长选举记录，将美国“对抗式民主”的弊端暴露无遗。
资料图：美国众议院共和党领袖麦卡锡。中新社记者 沙晗汀摄
由于两党对立加剧、党派内斗、利益分配不均等因素，众议长选举陷入一场拉锯战。在此次众议长竞选中，美国民主党议员继续抱团，多轮投票中，一票不投麦卡锡，共和党右翼“强硬派”领头的约20人小团体也拒绝投票麦卡锡。
麦卡锡的当选之路一波三折，除了本人的“政治投机派”角色在国会不受欢迎外，与共和党内部政治分歧关系密切。
一方面，共和党党内反对者认为，麦卡锡对民主党态度过于软弱，无力对抗民主党控制的参议院和拜登政府，另一方面，因为共和党的多数优势微弱，党内一些影响力较小的派系的政治力量则被放大，有利于他们巩固自己的选票。
此外，党内反对者也认为，自己的选票没有换取更多利益，希望以此作为筹码换取麦卡锡更大的让步，比如让他们获得众议院重要委员会中的职务。
作为仅次于美国总统、副总统的政坛三号人物，众议院议长通常由众议院多数党领袖担任，选举几乎没有悬念。然而，麦卡锡此次为当选，不得不做出多个关键让步，其中可能包括恢复一项罢黜议长动议机制，使得众议长的权力被削弱，难以掌控众议院。
美国有线电视新闻网CNN称，麦卡锡在这场不合时宜的政治勒索中作出让步，这种绥靖政策只会让极端主义势力更加强大。
这场引发全世界围观的尴尬选举暴露出美国政治存在严重的对立和分化。在权力博弈思维的裹挟下，党派利益凌驾于国家和人民利益之上，美国两党相互拆台，陷入“为反对而反对”的无脑对垒。而即便是一党内，也会因为利益分配问题产生不同的小派系，相互对抗，选票变成了谋利益的工具。
从国会山骚乱到打破记历史记录的15轮众议长选举，“对抗式民主”让美国政治陷入瓶颈，长期对抗势必会让政客们丧失客观公正的判断能力，其政治阶层是否有能力治理国家也会引发质疑。
两党之争和党派内斗进一步放大了美国政治体制弊病，美国所谓的“民主”形象，让全世界大跌眼镜。鼓吹以选民利益为先的美式选举，变成了政客们利益置换的游戏，进一步彰显出美国“民主政治”日渐失能，不断极化的党争已使美国政治制度陷入死循环。
House speaker election reveals deep-rooted problems in U.S. democracy
(ECNS) -- The Republican leader Kevin McCarthy was elected as the 55th speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives after 15 ballots. As the most grueling House speaker election in the past 164 years, the election has highlighted the defects of the country’s "confrontational democracy".
The election once reached a stalemate due to intense partisan strife, inner-party struggle among the Republicans, uneven distribution of interests, and more. Democratic Party members forged a close alliance, refusing to vote for McCarthy, while about 20 Republicans also declined to cast ballots for the GOP leader.
Except for his unpopular role as a "political speculator" in Congress, McCarthy’s hard-won election can be attributed to turmoil within the Republican Party.
On the one hand, opponents in the Republican Party believe that the GOP leader's attitude toward the Democrats is too weak to confront the Senate controlled by Democrats and the Biden administration.
On the other hand, the political power of some less influential factions in the Republican Party has been amplified due to the Party’s weak majority advantage in the House of Representatives, which is conducive to consolidating their ticket warehouses.
Meanwhile, these opponents believe that their votes failed to win them more benefits, hoping to use this as a bargaining chip for McCarthy's further concessions, such as getting them positions in important House Committees.
As the third political figure after the President and Vice President of the U.S., the speaker, by tradition, is the head of the majority party in the House of Representatives.
But McCarthy has made many concessions in order to bring the ultra conservatives along, involving what’s known as the “motion to vacate,” a mechanism by which members can force a vote to depose the speaker. The reported concessions will empower individual members at the expense of McCarthy’s sway as speaker.
CNN thought the concessions he made during this unseemly political shakedown would only make the extremist faction more powerful.
This embarrassing election, which has drawn global attention, exposed the serious opposition and polarization in American politics. Both Democrats and Republicans put their interests before that of the country and its people, attacking and opposing each other irrationally.
Besides, different factions arise within a single party and confront each other because of the distribution of interests. Votes have become a tool to win more benefits.
From Capitol riots to the House Speaker election with record-breaking ballots, "confrontational democracy" has become a bottleneck of American politics. Long-term confrontation will surely impede politicians to think objectively and fairly while their capacity of governing the country will also raise doubts among the public.
Both parties’ struggle and infighting among the Republicans have further amplified the defects of the American political system, with its "democratic" image shocking the world.
The U.S.-style election, which advocates putting voters' interests first, has become a game of interest exchange among politicians. In addition, it further demonstrates the malfunction of American "democratic politics" and the constantly polarized party struggle that has trapped the American political system into an infinite cycle.
2023年开年银行大额存单热销 额度有限储户“拼手速”抢购******
记者 彭 妍
2023年开年以来，大额存单市场热度上升，不少银行的大额存单甚至出现“抢购”“售罄”的情况。
有银行理财经理表示，最近银行大额存单比较火爆，一天6亿元额度上架，20分钟售罄。目前大额存单额度很少，即使提前预约，也未必能买到。
“去年以来债市和股市震荡调整，理财净值化转型后也出现了‘破净’问题，居民风险偏好降低，资产保值的诉求加大，而大额存单属于保本投资渠道，因此需求有所扩张。”中信证券首席经济学家明明在接受《证券日报》记者采访时表示，在存款利率改革的背景下，预计未来存款利息还将继续下行，因此投资者倾向尽早买入存款类产品以锁定收益。
《证券日报》记者近日走访北京地区各大银行网点发现，大额存单销售比较火爆，前来购买的市民较多，部分银行的大额存单已处于售罄状态，有的需要靠抢才能买到。
在走访过程中，多数银行的理财经理向记者反映：“临近春节，近期稳健型投资者对大额存单热情高涨，由于每一期释放的额度有限，目前大额存单不好抢，只要一开放，几分钟就售完了。”
目前大额存单各期限利率下跌趋势较为明显，例如，大部分银行3年期大额存单年利率已经下调至3%左右，但“一单难求”现象并未得到缓解。
对于当前大额存单热销的现象，招联金融首席研究员董希淼对记者表示，近年来我国居民存款增长较快，尤其是2022年居民投资理财风险偏好明显下降，居民存款增速显著加快。大额存单利率高于同期限存款，期限一般较长，有助于在利率下行周期锁定当前相对较高的利率，因此受到居民普遍欢迎。
近期监管层多次强调“降低企业融资和个人消费信贷成本”，增量和存量贷款利率有望维持低位，商业银行净息差依然承压。在此背景下，业内专家认为，存款利率仍有一定下调空间。
“从目前情况看，市场无风险利率下降是大势所趋。”董希淼表示，存款利率下降，偏好存款的居民收益将减少，但也具有多方面积极意义：首先是有助于降低银行负债成本，进一步推动银行降低实体经济实际融资成本；其次是约束银行对存款的不理性竞争行为，更好地防范金融风险；最后是中长期存款利率下降，有助于减少短期存款与中长期存款之间的“价差”，使银行存款期限结构更加合理。
明明认为，在存款利率改革的背景下，叠加信贷利率走低，银行为了确保净息差空间，不会“高息揽储”，因此大额存单的利率易降难升。
从大额存单未来的发行趋势看，易观分析金融行业高级咨询顾问苏筱芮表示，大额存单作为商业银行负债端的构成之一，预计在2023年将出现一些分化，大型银行负债端来源多样，且有继续压降存款成本的倾向，在大额存单发行数量上或不如中小银行积极，利率也将延续低于中小银行的趋势。
