Obama Concludes College Tour

 Obama Concludes College Tour 

WHITE HOUSE — While Republicans hold their convention in Tampa, Florida, President Barack Obama has been campaigning in college towns.  The president is hoping college students will help him win re-election, as they helped elect him in 2008.

In Charlottesville, Virginia Wednesday, Mr. Obama told about 7,500 people that young voters made change possible in the last election, and he hopes they can do it again.

“And in November, your voice will matter more than ever," said President Obama. "And listen, if you doubt that, then pay a little attention to what is happening in Tampa this week.  [Crowd boos]  Don’t boo, vote.”

The president spoke¹ near the University of Virginia, after the university declined the campaign’s request to speak on campus, saying it would disrupt classes.

Obama was concluding a two-day trip that also included speeches at Iowa State University and Colorado State University.

College students and other young voters were a large part of the coalition² that helped Barack Obama win the presidency³ in 2008.

This year, the crowds are often smaller, but still enthusiastic.

For the second day during the GOP convention, the president criticized Republican nominee⁴ Mitt⁵ Romney for promising⁶ to dismantle⁷ Mr. Obama’s health care plan.  Republicans often ridicule⁸ the plan as unnecessary government interference in a private industry, calling it “Obamacare.”

“He calls my health care law ‘Obamacare.’  I call his plan ‘Romney doesn’t care," said Obama.

Obama also made a rare campaign trail reference to immigration issues.  He condemned⁹ Republicans for opposing legislation to allow the children of illegal immigrants to stay in the United States.

“You can say that in this century, we do not think young immigrants who were brought here when they were children, and understand themselves as Americans, and have pledged allegiance to the Flag, should suddenly be deported¹⁰ to countries where they have never been," he said. 

Republican nominee Mitt Romney spoke Wednesday to the American Legion, a veterans organization.  At the group’s convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, Romney said that if elected, he will work to keep the U.S. military strong and make the 21st century an “American century.”

“And to accomplish that we must have the strongest military and the strongest economy in the world," said Romney. "Regrettably, President Obama has failed on both counts.  As his term in office comes to an end, we are now further from making this an American century.  Our economy is weak, and our military is bracing¹¹ for devastating¹² cuts.”

Public opinion polls show the president and Mr. Romney virtually even.

Obama is concentrating most of his efforts on a number of key states where the election is likely to be decided¹³, including Iowa, Colorado and Virginia.  In 2008, he was the first Democratic presidential candidate to win Virginia’s electoral votes since 1964.

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 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

3 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

4 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

5 mitt   

n.棒球手套，拳击手套，无指手套；vt.铐住，握手

参考例句：

• I gave him a baseball mitt for his birthday.为祝贺他的生日，我送给他一只棒球手套。
• Tom squeezed a mitt and a glove into the bag.汤姆把棒球手套和手套都塞进袋子里。

6 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

7 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

8 ridicule   

v.讥讽，挖苦；n.嘲弄

参考例句：

• You mustn't ridicule unfortunate people.你不该嘲笑不幸的人。
• Silly mistakes and queer clothes often arouse ridicule.荒谬的错误和古怪的服装常会引起人们的讪笑。

9 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

10 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 bracing   

adj.令人振奋的

参考例句：

• The country is bracing itself for the threatened enemy invasion. 这个国家正准备奋起抵抗敌人的入侵威胁。
• The atmosphere in the new government was bracing. 新政府的气氛是令人振奋的。

12 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

13 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。