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丰田汽车公司(Toyota Motor Corp.)总裁丰田章男(Akio Toyoda)跑到美国来修补关系。但首先，他与美国国会议员之间还有一大堆误解要弥合。
来自纽约州的民主党众议员唐斯(Edolphus Towns)问，丰田会不会在其所有车辆中提供“刹车优先系统”，以便降低驾驶员踩下刹车的情况下车辆继续加速的可能性。
使用日语的丰田章男与英语翻译商量了半天，然后用日语又说了一大堆，他的翻译用英文接着说。唐斯不耐烦地说，我只想知道答案为“是”或“否”。
这是美日历史中的一个标志性时刻：丰田公司是全球最成功的汽车厂商，在过去25年里打败了底特律，迫使其改正自身缺陷，而现在，丰田公司的总裁丰田章男却在美国国会面前低声下气。
在历时三个小时的听证会上情形都是如此。丰田章男在听证会上坚称电子油门系统没有缺陷，承诺将与声称油门有缺陷的教授会面，为涉及丰田车辆的事故道歉，并承受十分激烈、有时不无敌意的质询。
国会众议院监管和政府改革委员会(House Oversight and Government Reform Committee)的这场听证是国会计划就丰田安全危机举行的三场听证会中的第二场。丰田的安全危机促使其在全球范围内召回了逾800万辆车，原因是车辆突然加速、刹车问题以及其他一些问题。
丰田章男是怀着一个至高无上的目标来到华盛顿：重塑美国消费者的信心。丰田章男的祖父一手建立的丰田公司得以获得辉煌成功全赖美国业务的推动。
53岁的丰田章男的开场白是用英文念了一份声明，他说，我本人以及丰田公司都并非完美。我们从未逃避问题，或是假装没有注意到。我对丰田汽车驾驶人所遭遇的事故深感抱歉。
丰田章男的表现能否让恼火不已的消费者满意，这个问题尚需时日才见分晓。不过他确实赢得了一些国会议员的尊重。
丰田章男用英文念了一份开场声明。真正难以招架的是议员们向他和丰田北美业务首席执行长稻叶良睨(Yoshimi Inaba)提问的环节。
在日本，犯下大错的公司的高层也会进行类似的公开道歉。他们会深深鞠躬、表达悔恨之情，往往还会引咎辞职。但通常不会面对议员充满敌意的质问。
丰田章男周三可是被“入乡随俗”这句话给坑了。他没鞠躬道歉，相反承受了来自议员的狂风骤雨。
宾夕法尼亚州的民主党众议员Paul Kanjorski说，你以后可以吹嘘说自己经历过国会委员会质询的考验了。随后他痛责丰田公司未能更快采取行动应对安全问题，并妨碍了美国的产品可靠性体系。他说，他预计按美国的制度，丰田公司将被要求支付罚金。
这话引起了印第安纳州共和党众议员伯顿(Dan Burton)的异议。伯顿说，我首先要说的是，我们真的需要对民事侵权制度进行改革了。Kanjorski反驳道，那我们就应该原谅这些公司，任由他们伤害美国人民的生命吗？
丰田章男显得不知所措。
听证会进行过程中，当丰田章男觉得自己听明白问题时，他会沉着自信地用日语作答。他通过耳机收听经过翻译的问题，有时要求译员详加解释。
他常常不由自主地使用日本管理人员和政治家在这种场合下惯用的词句，表示他会尽力确保这些错误不会再犯，还为事故遇难者祈祷。
从事美国业务已有多年的稻叶良睨语调更为自信，没有借助翻译。他还为老板提供了一些指导。有一次他悄悄用日语说，总裁，注意简洁。
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[page]丰田章男遭美国国会质问[/page]
英文版全文：
Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda came here to mend fences. But first, he and lawmakers had to bridge an ocean of confusion.
U.S. Rep. Edolphus Towns (D., N.Y.) asked whether Toyota will offer in all its cars a 'brake override' to make it less likely a vehicle would keep accelerating if the driver hits the brakes.
Mr. Toyoda conferred with his translator. He spoke in Japanese. The translator spoke in English. There followed more Japanese, and more translation. 'Yes or no, that's what I am trying to get to,' Mr. Towns interrupted in frustration.
It was an iconic moment in U.S.-Japanese history: Mr. Toyoda, boss of the most successful car maker in the world, the company that bested Detroit over the past 25 years and forced it to change its own flawed ways, had come to humble himself before the American Congress.
And so it went for a three-hour session in which Mr. Toyoda insisted there was nothing wrong with the company's electronic throttles, promised to meet with a professor who claimed there was, apologized for accidents involving Toyota vehicles and endured heated and at times hostile questions.
The hearing before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee was the second of three planned by Congress on Toyota's safety crisis, which has prompted the Japanese car maker to recall more than eight million vehicles world-wide for unintended acceleration, brake problems and other issues.
Mr. Toyoda came to Washington with one overarching goal: rebuild the confidence of American consumers whose business has fueled the phenomenal success of the company founded by his grandfather.
The 53-year-old Mr. Toyoda took responsibility for the company's problems. 'I myself, as well as Toyota, am not perfect,' Mr. Toyoda said in his opening remarks, speaking in English as he read from a statement. 'We never run away from our problems or pretend we don't notice them. I am deeply sorry for any accident that any Toyota driver has experienced.'
Whether Mr. Toyoda's performance won over rattled consumers won't be clear for weeks or months. But he did earn some respect from lawmakers.[page]分页标题[/page]
Mr. Toyoda read an opening statement in English. The tricky business began when lawmakers questioned him and the head of Toyota's North American operations, Yoshimi Inaba.
In Japan, senior executives whose companies make big mistakes undertake a familiar, public ritual of apology. They bow deeply. They express regret. Often they resign. They aren't usually subjected to hostile interrogations by legislators.
On Wednesday, Mr. Toyoda stuck by the proverb, 'When in Rome, do as the Romans do'-or, as they say in Japan, 'When in a go [county], conform to that go.' He didn't bow. He did absorb the blows.
'You'll be able to brag about the fact that you withstood the interrogation of a congressional committee,' said Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D., Pa.), who then proceeded to lambaste Toyota for failing to act sooner to deal with safety problems and threw in a plug for the U.S. product-liability system. He said he expected Toyota 'will be called upon under our system to pay compensation.'
That set off an exchange with Rep. Dan Burton (R., Ind.), who said: 'Let me preface my remarks by saying we really need tort reform.' Mr. Kanjorski retorted: 'We should just forgive these companies and let them kill our people?'
Mr. Toyoda looked puzzled. AD:LiuxuePaper.com
As the hearing wore on, Mr. Toyoda spoke confidently in Japanese when he thought he understood the question. He listened to translated queries via an earphone, sometimes asking an interpreter for elaboration.
He often fell back on Japanese cliches that executives and politicians use in such situations, saying he would work to ensure the mistakes 'don't happen a second time' (n ido to okoranai you ni). He prayed for the souls of accident victims (gomeifuku wo oinori suru).
Mr. Inaba, a veteran of U.S. operations, spoke in more assured tones and answered without an interpreter. He also coached his boss. 'President,' he said at one point, speaking quietly in Japanese, 'keep it brief.'
