国外媒体:没有妻女陪伴 奥巴马孤身过49岁生日

Obama turns 49 with Mrs. Obama, kids out of town

Alone on his 49th birthday, President Barack Obama fled the empty White House mansion¹ and headed for a more intimate celebration with longtime friends in his Chicago hometown.

Obama has been living a bachelor's life for the past several days with first lady Michelle Obama and daughter Sasha visiting Spain and daughter Malia spending the month away at an undisclosed camp.

Before leaving Washington on Wednesday afternoon with the family dog, Bo, Obama got a couple of presents he didn't have to unwrap and which the White House described as being the highlight of his day: telephone calls from the women in his life.

Mrs. Obama and Sasha phoned in their happy birthday wishes, followed by a lunchtime call from Malia.

"Needless to say ... both those calls were the highlights of his day," White House press secretary Robert Gibbs told reporters who traveled with Obama aboard Air Force One.

Obama's Secret Service detail got him a present, though Gibbs would describe it only as "heartfelt."

As the presidential motorcade pulled closer to his house in Hyde Park, neighbors lined the street to welcome him home with waves and signs, including "Happy 49th Birthday President Barack Obama" and "Happy Birthday Mr. President."

Obama's birthday — though a year short of the milestone² 5-0 — also was viewed in this election year as a prime fundraising opportunity for Democrats³, who fear losing their hold on both houses of Congress come November.

美国总统贝拉克·奥巴马日前独自迎来49岁的生日。当天，奥巴马离开空荡荡的白宫官邸，前往芝加哥老家与老友们团聚，共庆生日。

这几天奥巴马一直过着“单身”生活。第一夫人米歇尔?奥巴马和小女儿萨莎正在西班牙度假，大女儿玛丽亚本月在外地某处参加夏令营。

本周三下午在与白宫第一犬“波”一同离开华盛顿前，奥巴马收到了两份不用打开的礼物，白宫称这是奥巴马生日当天最激动的时刻：接到妻女打来的电话。

米歇尔和萨莎打来电话祝他生日快乐，午饭时分玛丽亚也打来了电话。

白宫新闻发言人罗伯特?吉布斯告诉跟随“空军一号”一同前往芝加哥的记者们说：“毫无疑问，接到这两个电话是他这一天中最开心的时刻。”

奥巴马的特情组人员为他准备了一份礼物，不过吉布斯仅透露这份礼物“很有心”。

当总统车队驶抵奥巴马位于海德园的居所时，邻居们站在街道两旁挥手致意，并举着“奥巴马总统49岁生日快乐！”和“总统先生生日快乐！”等标语欢迎他回来。

奥巴马这次的生日还被视为民主党募款的好时机——尽管离50岁“大关”还有一年时间。今年美国国会将举行中期选举，民主党担心在11月的选举中会失去对参众两院的控制权。

1 mansion   

n.大厦，大楼；宅第

参考例句：

• The old mansion was built in 1850.这座古宅建于1850年。
• The mansion has extensive grounds.这大厦四周的庭园广阔。

2 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。

3 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》