VOA标准英语2014--Obama to Urge Action on Economy in State of Union Speech 奥巴马的国情咨文演讲强调经济问题

 

Obama to Urge Action on Economy in State of Union Speech 奥巴马的国情咨文演讲强调经济问题

WHITE HOUSE — President Barack Obama's fifth State of the Union Address on Tuesday will be closely watched in the U.S. and around the world.  He is expected to renew his call for a "year of action" on the U.S. economy and to help the middle class.  But ongoing¹ political polarization in Washington will pose ongoing challenges to his agenda.

Last year, Obama urged U.S. lawmakers to put nation before party.

"The idea that if you work hard and meet your responsibilities, you can get ahead, no matter where you come from, what you look like, who you love  -- it's our unfinished task," Obama said.

At a White House event with students earlier this month, the president previewed the theme of this year's address.

"I will mobilize the country around the national mission of making sure our economy offers every American who works hard a fair shot at success," Obama promised.

A majority of Americans share concerns about inequality.  But Obama remains² a politically polarizing figure, with approval ratings the lowest of his presidency³.

Congressional Republicans who forced a government shutdown last year to protest his health care law still pose substantial resistance.

Earlier this month, a bipartisan budget deal averted⁴ another shutdown.  

But analyst⁵ Thomas Mann of the Brookings Institution agrees Obama's second term may be one of limited expectations.

"For the most part I think the president understands that he is not going to get much out of the Congress unless a miracle happened in the [2014] midterm election and Democrats⁶ regain⁷ control of the House and increase the size of their majority in the Senate. That is highly unlikely," Mann said.

In 2014, immigration reform stands the best chance of making progress.  Obama's effort to strenghten gun control laws and raise the minimum wage remain blocked.

Mann says the president should not deliver a long list of goals but instead focus on rebutting⁸ Republican criticisms on health care and the economy.

"This is not the time for the laundry list.  This is time to think strategically about the limits of State of the Union speeches and about what opportunities he might have," Mann said.

Obama is expected to highlight the end of the U.S. combat role in Afghanistan.  Also, diplomatic efforts to end bloodshed in Syria, and the removal of chemical weapons without U.S. military action.

James Goldgeier, Dean of The American University School of International Service, says the president is certain to highlight another achievement, the interim⁹ nuclear deal with Iran.

"He is going to want to talk about the fact that he got it done," noted¹⁰ Goldgeier. "And I think it is also important for him to put on the defense¹¹ those people who are questioning the diplomacy¹², those people who think that since sanctions got us to this point, more sanctions would help us do even better."

 

The White House has mounted a major Internet and social media campaign for the speech, which President Obama suggests will be a bit shorter this year.

1 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

2 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

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 averted   

防止，避免( avert的过去式和过去分词 )； 转移

参考例句：

• A disaster was narrowly averted. 及时防止了一场灾难。
• Thanks to her skilful handling of the affair, the problem was averted. 多亏她对事情处理得巧妙，才避免了麻烦。

5 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

6 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》

7 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

8 rebutting   

v.反驳，驳回( rebut的现在分词 )；击退

参考例句：

• The union countered with letters rebutting the company's claims. 工会写信驳回了公司的要求。 来自辞典例句

9 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

10 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

11 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

12 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。