President Barack Obama is again traveling to the central U.S. to win support for his plan to reform the nation's health care system. While the president spoke to an enthusiastic crowd in Minnesota Saturday, a large crowd gathered in Washington, D.C. to protest his policies.
美国总统奥巴马再次前往美国中部争取民众对他的全国健保体系改革计划的支持。奥巴马在明尼苏达对热情支持的民众讲话之际，大批示威者聚集到华盛顿，抗议总统的政策。
President Obama's rally in Minneapolis, Minnesota looked and sounded much like his election campaign rallies last year.
奥巴马总统在明尼苏达州明尼阿波利斯市举行的集会看上去和听起来都像他去年竞选造势大会一样。
"Minnesota, are you fired up? Ready to go? Fired up! Ready to go! Fired up! Ready to go! They cannot stop us. Let's go get this done. Thank you everybody. God bless you," he said.
总统和民众热烈互动，群情振奋。奥巴马说：“他们无法阻挡我们，让我们完成这个任务。谢谢大家，上帝保佑你们。”
Mr. Obama went to the arena where John McCain accepted last year's Republican presidential nomination, and said the nation can no longer afford to play games with health care. He said a new U.S. Treasury Department report conveys the urgency of the problem.
奥巴马演讲的场所是去年共和党的麦凯恩接受总统候选人提名的地方。奥巴马说，美国再也经不起在健保议题上做游戏了。他说，美国财政部的报告传达了这个问题的紧迫性。
"Nearly half of all Americans under 65 will lose their health coverage at some point over the next 10 years. More than one-third will go without coverage for longer than one year. We have got to do something," he said.
他说：“未来10年间，65岁以下的人有将近一半会在某种程度上失去他们的健保福利。三分之一以上的人将在一年以上的时间里没有任何健保计划的支持。我们必须就此采取行动。”
Earlier Saturday, in his weekly internet address, Mr. Obama said the country has had a long and important debate on health reform, but it is time to act.
奥巴马总统在星期六早上每周一次的因特网讲话中说，美国对医疗改革已经进行了很长时间的重要的辩论，而目前是采取行动的时候了。
"In the United States of America, no one should have to worry that they'll go without health insurance - not for one year, not for one month, not for one day. And once I sign my health reform plan into law - they will not," he said.
他说：“在美国，没有人应该为得不到健康保险而担心，一年没有不行，一个月没有不行，一天没有也不行。一旦我将健保改革计划签署成为法律，就不用再为这些担心了。”
The White House and Congress are working to devise health care reform legislation that both Democrats and Republicans can accept.
白宫和国会正在研究如何设计健保改革法案，让民主党和共和党都能够接受。
But in the weekly Republican response, Senator John Cornyn of Texas criticized the cost of the president's $900 billion plan, which Mr. Obama had outlined in a Wednesday speech to a joint session of Congress.
但是，在每周一次的共和党在媒体上的反应中，来自德克萨斯州的参议员约翰.克宁批评总统耗资9000亿美元的计划。奥巴马总统星期三在国会参众两院联席大会上谈到了他这个计划。
"The president told us Wednesday night that, quote, 'There remain some significant details to be ironed out,' close quote. He was not kidding. The most significant detail is the cost of his plan and its impact on our long-term budget deficit," he said.
约翰.克宁参议员对长期的预算赤字表示担心。他说：“总统星期三晚上对我们说，‘有一些重要的细节仍有待得到解决’。他不是在开玩笑。最重要的细节是他健保计划的成本以及因此对我们的长期预算赤字带来的冲击。”
In Washington, meanwhile, demonstrators turned Mr. Obama's campaign slogan "Yes We Can" upside down, to say "No You Can't". Tens of thousands of people, angry about government spending, marched down Pennsylvania Avenue to Capitol Hill for a day of rallies against the president's policies on the economy and health care.
同时，在华盛顿，有一片抗议的声浪。抗议者将奥巴马总统竞选时常用的“是的，我们能行”的横幅倒过来举起，并高呼“不，你不能!”。 数以万计的民众不满政府的开支计划，展开一整天的抗议行动，他们从宾夕法尼亚大道开始游行，一直走向国会大厦。他们反对总统在经济和健保方面的政策。
Protester Sherri Melton, of North Carolina, said Mr. Obama's policies are leading the U.S. toward socialism.
"We are being pushed and shoved and thrown into socialism. And it is not just our health care, but if they get health care, they get every part of our lives," she said.
Robin Clayson came from Michigan to object to the president's health care plan.
来自密西根的克雷森女士说，她反对奥巴马德健保计划。
"Maybe it would be nice if he [Obama] sees that he is working for the people, and he sees that the people are so drastically against a lot of his policies that maybe he might re-think it and say, 'Let's see what we can all work out together,'" Clayson said.
她说：“如果总统认为他在为人民工作，他最好能看到民众是极力反对他的很多政策的。如果他能重新思考，说‘让我们看看我们一块儿能达到什么目标’那就好了。”
A series of conservative speakers addressed the crowd, including several Republican lawmakers. Many urged less government involvement in Americans' lives. Others wanted less taxpayer money spent on government programs. The rally was organized by several anti-Obama political groups.
一位位保守人士对大批民众发言，其中包括几位共和党国会议员。很多人敦促政府减少对美国民众生活的干预。也有一些人要求少把纳税人的资金用于政府的支出项目。这次集会是由几个反对奥巴马的政治团体共同组织的。 |