奥巴马每周电视讲话：总统呼吁为中产阶级争取更多利益

Hi everybody.

海，大家好。

On Wednesday, I spoke¹ about what we need to do as a country to build a better bargain for the middle class,

我在周三谈到了我们作为一个国家为中产阶级讨回一点利益所需要做的。

to make sure everyone who works hard has a chance to get ahead in the 21st century economy.

确保任何努力工作的人在21世纪的经济里有机会过得好。

You see, over the past four and a half years, America has fought its way back from the worst recession of our lifetimes.

众所周知，在过去的4年半里，美国一直在艰苦奋斗，走出我们一生中最严重的衰退。

We saved the auto² industry, took on a broken health care system,

我们挽救了汽车工业，修补了破损的医疗体系，

invested in new American technologies to reverse our addiction³ to foreign oil,

投资于美国的新技术彻底摆脱我们对进口石油的依赖，

and changed a tax code too skewed in favor of the wealthiest at the expense of working families.

改革以牺牲工薪阶层为代价倾向于富人群的税法。

As a result, our businesses have created 7.2 million new jobs over the past 40 months.

结果是，我们的企业在过去的40个月里创造了720万个新就业机会。

We produce more renewable energy than ever, and more natural gas than anyone.

我们生产了比以往更多的可再生能源，生产的天然气超过任何国家。

Health care costs are growing at the slowest rate in 50 years.

医疗成本增长率创50年来最低。

Our deficits⁴ are falling at the fastest rate in 60 years.

我们的赤字以60年来最快的速度下降。

Thanks to the grit⁵ and resilience of the American people,

由于美国人民的坚忍不拔，

we've cleared away the rubble⁶ of crisis and begun to lay a new foundation for stronger, more durable⁷ economic growth.

我们扫清了危机的废墟奠定了更加强劲更加持久的经济增长的基矗

But as any middle-class family will tell you, we're not yet where we need to be.

但是正如任何中产阶级所告诉你的，我们做的还不到位。

Trends that have been eroding⁸ middle-class security for decades-technology that makes some jobs obsolete⁹, global competition that makes others moveable, growing inequality and the policies that perpetuate¹⁰ it,

几十年来侵蚀中产阶级安全感的各种趋势—使一些工作过时的技术，使其他国家进步的全球竞争，日益增长的不平等和令其屡禁不止的政策

all these things still exist, and in some ways, the recession made them worse.

这一切都存在，经济衰退还以某些方式加重这些。

Reversing these trends must be Washington's highest priority.

逆转这些趋势必须是华盛顿的第一要务。

It sure is mine.

肯定是我的第一要务。

But over the past couple of years in particular, Washington has taken its eye off the ball.

但是在过去的几年里，华盛顿反而转移了视线。

An endless parade of distractions¹¹, political posturing¹² and phony scandals shift focus from what needs to be done.

无尽的游行、政治作秀、造假丑闻使我们偏离了我们需要做的。

And as Washington prepares to enter another budget debate, the stakes could not be higher.

而随着华盛顿准备进入另一场预算辩论，没有什么更加紧迫了。

The choices we make now will determine whether or not every American has a fighting chance in the 21st century.

我们现在做出的决策将决定是否每一个美国人都在21世纪有机会奋斗。

If we don't make the investments necessary to make America a magnet for good jobs,

如果我们不做必要的投资使美国成为好工作的磁石，

in education, and manufacturing, and research, and our transportation and information networks-we might as well hit the “pause” button while the rest of the world forges ahead in a global economy.

在教育、制造业、研究及我们的交通通讯网络的投资—我们可能就会按下“暂停”按钮，而世界上其他国家则在全球经济中大踏步前进。

And that ' s certainly not going to fix what ails¹³ the middle class.

这当然不能解决中产阶级的困扰。

Here's what will:

以下是能解决这些困扰的：

a strategy that builds on the cornerstones of what it means to be middle class in America, and what it takes to work your way into the middle class.

建立决定什么是美国的中产阶级的基石上的战略，它能为你开辟进入中产阶级的道路。

Good jobs that pay good wages.

收入可观的好工作。

An education that prepares our children and our workers for the global competition they'll face.

为我们的孩子们和工人们所准备的应对他们面临的全球竞争的教育。

Homeownership that's based on a solid foundation, where buyers and lenders play by the same set of rules.

基础牢固的所有者有住所，买房者和放贷者在同一规则下竞争。

Affordable¹⁴ health care that's there for you when you get sick.

当你生病时可以承受得起的医疗。

A secure retirement¹⁵ even if you're not rich.

你不富裕也有可靠的退休金。

More chances for folks to earn their way into the middle class as long as they're willing to work for it.

更多只要努力工作就能进入中产阶级的机会。

Over the next several weeks, in cities and towns across the country, I'll continue to lay out my ideas in each of these areas.

在未来的几周里，在全国各个城市和乡镇，我将继续在这些地区阐述我的观点。

Because reversing the forces that have conspired¹⁶ against the middle class for decades will require more than short-term thinking;

因为打退几十年来暗中损害中产阶级势力需要的不是短期思维；

it will require a long-term American strategy, based on steady, persistent¹⁷ effort.

它需要的是长期的美国战略，基于稳定的坚实努力的战略。

I know there are members of both parties who understand what's at stake,

我知道两党中都有人理解什么是当务之急，

and I'm open to ideas from across the political spectrum¹⁸, as long as they meet the test of strengthening the prospects¹⁹ of hard-working families.

我将海纳百川听取任何政治派别的意见，只要它们能经得起加强勤奋工作家庭愿景的考验。

But repealing²⁰ Obamacare, gutting²¹ critical investments in our future, threatening to default on the bills this country has already racked up, or shutting down the government just because I'm for keeping it open-none of those thing add up to an economic plan.

但是废除“奥巴马医保”，对未来投资釜底抽薪，威胁要对国家已经积累的赤字赖账，或仅仅因为我倾向继续运行就关闭政府—这些都不能列入经济计划。

None of that will take this country where it needs to go.

这些都不能使国家实现其发展目标。

We can do this if we work together.

如果我们齐心协力就能实现目标。

It won't be easy,

这并不容易，

but if we take a few bold steps-and if Washington is willing to shake off its complacency and set aside some of the slash-and-burn partisanship²² we' ve seen in recent years-our economy will keep getting stronger.

但是如果我们采取一些大胆的举措—如果华盛顿愿意放弃他们的妄自尊大并且搁置我们近年来看到的争斗性政党关系—我们的经济就能更加强劲。

And as long as I have the privilege of holding this office,

只要我还是总统，

I will spend every minute of every day doing everything in my power to make this economy work for working Americans again;

我就会每时每刻在我的职权范围内尽一切努力使这个经济体再次为辛勤工作的美国人工作；

to build that better bargain for the middle class;

为中产阶级争取更多利益；

to make sure that the American Dream is something that's achievable for everybody-not just today, but for decades to come.

确保美国梦是每个人都能圆的梦—不仅今天，今后几十年也如此。

Thanks, and have a great weekend.

谢谢大家，祝你们周末愉快。

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

3 addiction   

n.上瘾入迷，嗜好

参考例句：

• He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。
• Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

4 deficits   

n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 )；赤字；亏空；亏损

参考例句：

• The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 财政部一贯高估预算赤字。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上许多农民还在遭受经济上的亏损。 来自辞典例句

5 grit   

n.沙粒，决心，勇气；v.下定决心，咬紧牙关

参考例句：

• The soldiers showed that they had plenty of grit. 士兵们表现得很有勇气。
• I've got some grit in my shoe.我的鞋子里弄进了一些砂子。

6 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

7 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。

8 eroding   

侵蚀，腐蚀( erode的现在分词 )； 逐渐毁坏，削弱，损害

参考例句：

• The coast is slowly eroding. 海岸正慢慢地被侵蚀。
• Another new development is eroding the age-old stereotype of the male warrior. 另一个新现象是，久已形成的男人皆武士的形象正逐渐消失。

9 obsolete   

adj.已废弃的，过时的

参考例句：

• These goods are obsolete and will not fetch much on the market.这些货品过时了，在市场上卖不了高价。
• They tried to hammer obsolete ideas into the young people's heads.他们竭力把陈旧思想灌输给青年。

10 perpetuate   

v.使永存，使永记不忘

参考例句：

• This monument was built to perpetuate the memory of the national hero.这个纪念碑建造的意义在于纪念民族英雄永垂不朽。
• We must perpetuate the system.我们必须将此制度永久保持。

11 distractions   

n.使人分心的事[人]( distraction的名词复数 )；娱乐，消遣；心烦意乱；精神错乱

参考例句：

• I find it hard to work at home because there are too many distractions. 我发觉在家里工作很难，因为使人分心的事太多。
• There are too many distractions here to work properly. 这里叫人分心的事太多，使人无法好好工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 posturing   

做出某种姿势( posture的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• She was posturing a model. 她正在摆模特儿的姿势。
• She says the President may just be posturing. 她说总统也许只是在做样子而已。

13 ails   

v.生病( ail的第三人称单数 )；感到不舒服；处境困难；境况不佳

参考例句：

• He will not concede what anything ails his business. 他不允许任何事情来干扰他的工作。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Measles ails the little girl. 麻疹折磨着这个小女孩。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

15 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

16 conspired   

密谋( conspire的过去式和过去分词 )； 搞阴谋； （事件等）巧合； 共同导致

参考例句：

• They conspired to bring about the meeting of the two people. 他们共同促成了两人的会面。
• Bad weather and car trouble conspired to ruin our vacation. 恶劣的气候连同汽车故障断送了我们的假日。

17 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

18 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

19 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

20 repealing   

撤销，废除( repeal的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• In addition, repealing the alternative minimum tax would also help. 此外，废除替代性最低税也会有所帮助。
• Repealing the investment tax credit. 取消投资税款扣除。

21 gutting   

n.去内脏v.毁坏（建筑物等）的内部( gut的现在分词 )；取出…的内脏

参考例句：

22 Partisanship   

n. 党派性, 党派偏见

参考例句：

• Her violent partisanship was fighting Soames's battle. 她的激烈偏袒等于替索米斯卖气力。
• There was a link of understanding between them, more important than affection or partisanship. ' 比起人间的感情，比起相同的政见，这一点都来得格外重要。 来自英汉文学