奥巴马每周电视讲话：独立日向军人家属致敬

WASHINGTON, DC — In this week’s address, President Obama wished everyone a happy Fourth of July, and recognized our service members, veterans and their families for their service to our country. The President commended First Lady Michelle Obama and Second Lady Dr. Jill Biden on the most recent milestone¹ of their Joining Forces initiative. This week, the First Lady and Dr. Biden announced that all fifty states have acted to streamline² professional licensing³ for military spouses⁵, who often move across state lines and need to re-certify for a job they are already qualified⁶ for. Although more work needs to be done, today, many military spouses no longer have to worry about putting their career on hold just because their loved ones have chosen to serve this country. That’s what this initiative is all about – serving our troops as well as they have served us. This holiday weekend, visit JoiningForces.gov to find out how you can serve service members, veterans and military families in your community.

Remarks of President Barack Obama as Prepared for Delivery

Weekly Address

The White House

July 2, 2016 

Hi everybody, and Happy Fourth of July weekend.  On Monday, Michelle, Malia, Sasha, and I will celebrate the Fourth like most of you – in the backyard.  We’ll hang out with family and friends, throw some burgers and dogs on the grill⁷, and watch the fireworks show.

Of course, we’re fortunate enough to have the South Lawn as our backyard.  So we’re also going to fill it with hundreds of our troops, our veterans, and their families.  Over the past seven and a half years, it’s become one of my favorite traditions.  We get to celebrate our freedoms while doing what we can to honor all those who serve and sacrifice to make that freedom possible.

And I know that honoring our service members, our veterans, and their families is something that so many Americans try to do every day, without fanfare⁸, or expectation of anything in return.

For the past five years, Michelle and Dr. Jill Biden have tried to follow the example of so many of those Americans with their Joining Forces initiative.  They’ve rallied businesses to hire more than 1.2 million veterans and military spouses, and helped reduce veteran homelessness.  And just this week, Michelle and Jill announced a breakthrough on a concern they’ve heard again and again from the military spouses they spend so much time with – and that’s the issue of professional licensing.

This is something that most Americans aren’t familiar with.  But for military families, it’s a big challenge.  Here’s why.  Our troops are often transferred from base to base.  It’s part of the job.  And because their families serve with them, that means their spouses move ten times more often than the rest of us.  Ten times more often.  That’s tough on a career.  And more than one in three of these spouses works in a profession that requires a professional license⁹ or certification.  Nurses.  Childcare providers.  Accountants.  Social workers.  And lots of other jobs.

And until recently, when these spouses were asked to move across state lines, they often needed to re-certify for a job they’re already qualified for.  A nurse with years of experience might have to take entry-level classes, or pay a fee, or wait months for paperwork to be processed before he or she could get back to work on the job they love and that lets them support their families.

It didn’t make any sense.  So we changed it.  When Michelle and Jill took up this cause five years ago, only three states had taken action on military spouse⁴ licensing.  But they rallied governors and state legislatures to action.  And this week, we reached a milestone.  Today, all fifty states have acted to streamline many of these licensing issues.  This is a big step forward, but we’re not done yet.  We’re going to keep working with states to make licensing simpler for more jobs and reach more qualified workers.  But we can finally say to so many of our military families – when you move, you’ll no longer be forced to put the career you love on hold just because you and your families have chosen to serve this country.

That’s what this is about – serving our men and women in uniform as well as they have served us.  But you don’t have to be a governor or a First Lady to make a difference.  So this holiday weekend, take a look at JoiningForces.gov to find out how you can serve the troops, veterans, and military families in your community.

And to all our brave men and women in uniform – you represent the best of who we are as a nation.  On this day and every day, we thank you.

Thanks everybody.  Have a great Fourth of July.

1 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。

2 streamline   

vt.使成流线型；使简化；使现代化

参考例句：

• We must streamline our methods.我们必须简化方法。
• Any liquid or gas passing it will have streamline flow.任何通过它的液体或气体将呈流线型的流动。

3 licensing   

v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• A large part of state regulation consists of occupational licensing. 大部分州的管理涉及行业的特许批准。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• That licensing procedures for projects would move faster. 这样的工程批准程序一定会加快。 来自辞典例句

4 spouse   

n.配偶(指夫或妻)

参考例句：

• Her spouse will come to see her on Sunday.她的丈夫星期天要来看她。
• What is the best way to keep your spouse happy in the marriage?在婚姻中保持配偶幸福的最好方法是什么？

5 spouses   

n.配偶，夫或妻( spouse的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Jobs are available for spouses on campus and in the community. 校园里和社区里有配偶可做的工作。 来自辞典例句
• An astonishing number of spouses-most particularly in the upper-income brackets-have no close notion of their husbands'paychecks. 相当大一部分妇女——特别在高收入阶层——并不很了解他们丈夫的薪金。 来自辞典例句

6 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

7 grill   

n.烤架，铁格子，烤肉；v.烧，烤，严加盘问

参考例句：

• Put it under the grill for a minute to brown the top.放在烤架下烤一分钟把上面烤成金黄色。
• I'll grill you some mutton.我来给你烤一些羊肉吃。

8 fanfare   

n.喇叭；号角之声；v.热闹地宣布

参考例句：

• The product was launched amid much fanfare worldwide.这个产品在世界各地隆重推出。
• A fanfare of trumpets heralded the arrival of the King.嘹亮的小号声宣告了国王驾到。

9 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。