VOA文化艺术2023--How Do US Presidents Spend the Fourth of July?

How Do US Presidents Spend the Fourth of July?

Americans celebrate Independence Day on the Fourth of July. American presidents have their own ways of celebrating the holiday, too, with or without the public.

Many presidents have gone to the beach, the mountains, farms, or golf courses for the national holiday. During the Depression, President Franklin Roosevelt even went sailing to Hawaii on a fishing and working vacation.

July 4 has also been a day for some presidents to be at the center of the celebration with the public.

This year, U.S. President Joe Biden plans to invite members of the military, veterans and their families to the White House for an outdoor cookout and holiday celebration.

Two years earlier, Biden told a crowd at the White House that "we're closer than ever to declaring our independence from a deadly virus." It was the first large event for Biden who took office during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2017, President Donald Trump¹ played golf and then celebrated² with military families at the White House.

President Barrack Obama combined two Fourth of July traditions: celebrating American troops and honoring new citizens in 2012. Like several presidents before him, President George W. Bush welcomed more than 70 new citizens from 30 countries at a White House ceremony in 2008.

In 1987, President Ronald Reagan used the holiday as a chance to talk about his economic program in a holiday radio message.

As the United States turned 200 years old in 1976, President Gerald Ford³ spoke⁴ at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where the nation's founders⁵ approved the Declaration⁶ of Independence. Later, he watched a show of tall sailing ships in New York Harbor.

In 1968, President Lyndon Johnson spoke in San Antonio, Texas, about the lack of independence for the poor, minorities, the ill, people "who must breathe polluted air" and those who live in fear of crime, on the Fourth of July.

For President Dwight Eisenhower, it was time for golf and more golf in 1953 and 1957.

With World War II ending the year before, President Harry⁷ Truman enjoyed the 1946 holiday in Maryland's Catoctin Mountains, now known as Camp David.

In 1930, President Herbert Hoover spent time by the Rapidan River in the state of Virginia. And in 1928, President Calvin Coolidge, who was born on July 4th, 1872, went trout⁸ fishing in Wisconsin.

During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln used the holiday to ask Congress for more troops to fight the South in 1861.

In 1850, President Zachary Taylor became ill after eating and drinking on the holiday. He died five days later.

President James Monroe, who was the nation's fifth president, died on July 4, 1831, in New York City at age 73.

In addition to Monroe, two other former presidents died on Independence Day.

John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, who had been political enemies but friends in later, private life, both died on the Fourth of July 1826, hours apart.

I'm Mario Ritter, Jr.

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

3 Ford   

n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过

参考例句：

• They were guarding the bridge,so we forded the river.他们驻守在那座桥上，所以我们只能涉水过河。
• If you decide to ford a stream,be extremely careful.如果已决定要涉过小溪，必须极度小心。

4 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。

5 founders   

n.创始人( founder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was one of the founders of the university's medical faculty. 他是该大学医学院的创建人之一。 来自辞典例句
• The founders of our religion made this a cornerstone of morality. 我们宗教的创始人把这看作是道德的基石。 来自辞典例句

6 declaration   

n.宣布，宣告，宣言，声明（书），申报

参考例句：

• We read the declaration posted on the bulletin board.我们读了贴在布告板上的声明。
• At the recent convention a declaration was adopted.在最近举行的大会上通过了一项宣言。

7 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

8 trout   

n.鳟鱼；鲑鱼(属)

参考例句：

• Thousands of young salmon and trout have been killed by the pollution.成千上万的鲑鱼和鳟鱼的鱼苗因污染而死亡。
• We hooked a trout and had it for breakfast.我们钓了一条鳟鱼，早饭时吃了。