奧巴馬競選宣言（節選）

美國大選早已結束，奧巴馬也已經走馬上任，但大選期間出現的奧巴馬現象卻絲毫沒有減弱的痕跡:美國社會出現了一批以“奧巴馬”為詞頭的新名詞，如“O一代”;他掀起了各種狂潮，年輕人因為他而開始關注政治。而“跟奧巴馬學英語”亦是他所引發的另一股狂潮。他在許多場合的演講成了各國英語學習愛好者爭相模仿的絕佳原聲素材，明星總統一時間變身最有魅力的英語教師。臺上的他總是那么地充滿激情與活力，但又不乏穩重，他的話語擲地有聲，總能得到群眾的共鳴與回應。

本文摘自中信出版社出版的《跟奧巴馬學英語》一書。該書選取了奧巴馬的9篇演講，并附有簡要的背景介紹。奧巴馬演講的話題涉及了美國當今社會的方方面面，有很強的時效性，這也為讀者們在學習語言的同時提供了一個了解美國社會的渠道。

小編Tips: 這里的選段選自奧巴馬2007年2月10日在伊利諾伊州首府斯普林菲爾德所發表的競選宣言，他的聲音富有磁性，充滿激情，咬字清晰，很適合跟讀模仿。在跟讀的同時，還請讀者們細細體會奧巴馬如何與觀眾們打成一片的奧妙，你會發現他用得最多的不是“I”，而是“WE”。

Let me begin by saying thanks to all of you who’ve traveled， from far and wide， to bravethe cold today.

We all made this journey for a reason. It’s humbling to see a crowd like this， but in my heart I know you didn’t just come here for me; you came here because you believe in what this country can be. In the face of war， you believe there can be peace. In the face of despair， you believe there can be hope. In the face of a politics that shut you out， that’s told you to settle， that’s divided us for too long， you believe that we can be one people， reaching out for what’s possible， building that more perfect union.

That’s the journey we’re on today. But let me tell you how I came to be here. As most of you know， I am not a native of this great state. I moved to 1)Illinois over two decades ago. I was a young man then， just a year out of college; I knew no one in Chicago when I arrived; I was without money or family connections. But a group of churches had offered me a job as a community organizer for a 2)grand sum of $13，000 a year. And I accepted the job， sight unseen， motivated then by a single， simple， powerful idea—that I might play a small part in building a better America.

My work took me to some of Chicago’s poorest neighborhoods. I joined with pastors and 3)laypeople to deal with communities that had been 4)ravaged by plant closings. I saw that the problems people faced weren’t simply local in nature—that the decisions to close a steel millwas made by distant executives; that the lack of textbooks and computers in a school could be traced to 5)skewed priorities of politicians a thousand miles away; and then when a child turns toviolence， I came to realize that there’s a hole in that boy’s heart that no government alone can fill.

It was in these neighborhoods that I received the best education that I ever had， and where I learned the meaning of my Christian faith.

After three years of this work， I went to law school， because I wanted to understand how the law should work for those in need. I became a civil rights lawyer and taught constitutional law， and after a time， I came to understand that our cherished rights of liberty and equality depend on the active participation of an awakened 6)electorate. It was with these ideas in mind that I arrived in this capital city as a State Senator .

It was here， in Springfield， where I saw all that is America converge—farmers and teachers， businessmen and laborers， all of them with a story to tell， all of them seeking a seat at the table， all of them 7)clamoring to be heard. I made lasting friendships here—friends that I see in the audience here today.

It was here where we learned to disagree without being disagreeable—that it’s possible to compromise so long as you know those principles that can never be compromised; and that so long as we’re willing to listen to each other， we can assume the best in people instead of the worst.

It’s why we were able to reform a death penalty system that was broken. That’s why we were able to give health insurance to children in need. That’s why we made the tax system， right here in Springfield， more fair and just for working families， and that’s why we passed ethics reforms that the cynics said could never， ever be passed.

It was here， in Springfield， where north， south， east， and west come together that I was reminded of the essential decency of the American people—where I came to believe that through this decency， we can build a more hopeful America.

And that is why， in the shadow of the Old State Capitol， where Lincoln once called on a house divided to stand together， where common hopes and common dreams still live， I stand before you today to announce my candidacy for President of the United States

of America.

I recognize that there is a certain 8)presumptuousness in this…a certain 9)audacity to this announcement. I know that I haven’t spent a lot of time learning the ways of Washington. But I’ve been there long enough to know that the ways of Washington must change.

The genius of our founders is that they designed a system of government that can be changed. And we should take heart， because we’ve changed this country before. In the face of 10)tyranny， a band of patriots brought an empire to its knees. In the face of secession， we unified a nation and set the captives free. In the face of depression， we put people back to work and lifted millions out of poverty. We welcomed immigrants to our shores， we opened railroads to the west， we landed a man on the moon， and we heard a King’s call to let justice roll down like waters， and righteousness like a mighty stream. We have done this before.

Each and every time， a new generation has risen up and done what’s needed to be done. Today we are called once more—and it is time for our generation to answer that call.

I know there are those who don’t believe we can do all these things. I understand the 11)skepticism. After all， every four years， candidates from both parties make similar promises， and I expect this year will be no different. All of us running for President will travel around the country offering ten-point plans and making grand speeches; all of us will 12)trumpet those qualities we believe make us uniquely qualified to lead this country. But too many times， after the election is over， and the 13)confetti is swept away， all those promises fade from memory， and the 14)lobbyists and the special interests move in， and people turn away， disappointed as before， left to struggle on their own.

That’s why this campaign can’t only be about me. It must be about us—it must be about what we can do together. This campaign must be the occasion， the vehicle， of your hopes， and your dreams. It will take your time， your energy， and your advice—to push us forward when we’re doing right， and to let us know when we’re not. This campaign has to be about reclaiming the meaning of citizenship， restoring our sense of common purpose， and realizing that few obstacles can withstand the power of millions of voices calling for change.

首先，請允許我對今天冒著嚴寒、遠道而來的朋友們表示感謝。

我們此行都為了一個目的。我感謝大家的熱誠，在我心里，我知道你們并非僅僅為我而來，你們此行的原因更在于你們相信這個國家的未來。面對戰爭，你們相信和平將至。面對絕望，你們相信希望尚存。政治將你們拒之門外，讓你們安于現狀，長期彼此分隔，但你們相信我們作為一個民族，能夠實現可能實現的一切，打造一個更加完美的聯邦。

這就是今天我們此行的目的。我告訴你們我是如何來到這里的。你們中的大多數人都知道，我并不是偉大的伊利諾伊州土生土長的公民，我是在20多年前搬到這里的。那時的我還是個年輕人，剛從大學畢業一年;在芝加哥，我身無分文，舉目無親。但有幾個教堂為我提供了一份社區組織者的工作，年薪1.3萬美元。我毫不猶豫地接受了這份工作，因為我一直被一個簡單且有力的想法激勵著——我可以為建設一個更加美好的美國盡一份綿薄之力。

這份工作使我有機會走訪了芝加哥一些最貧困的社區。我和牧師及普通信徒一起，幫助那些因工廠倒閉而備受蹂躪的社區。我發現人們所遇到的不僅僅是地區性的問題——關閉鋼廠的決定是遠方的行政官員作出的;學校缺少課本和計算機可以追溯到千里之外政客們的施政不當;當一個孩子有暴力傾向時，我認為他心靈的創傷單靠政府永遠無法彌補。

正是在這些社區里，我受到了有生以來最好的教育，也懂得了基督教信仰的真諦。

我在這個職位上一待就是三年，之后我去了(哈佛)法學院學習，因為我想弄明白法律是如何為那些需要幫助的人提供服務的。我成了一名民權事務律師，并教授憲法課程。之后不久，我逐漸意識到我們所珍惜的自由與平等的權利依賴于全體選民的覺醒和積極參與。懷著這些想法，我來到了州首府，成為了一名州參議員。

正是在這里——斯普林菲爾德市，我眼見了美國所融匯的一切——農民和教師，商人和公司職員——所有人都有著各自的故事，所有人都希望獲得一席之地，所有人都強烈期望自己的發言能夠受到重視。我在這里獲得了永恒的友誼———我看到許多朋友也在今天的聽眾當中。

正是在這里，我們學會了用和顏悅色的方式去對待意見不一，在堅持原則的情況下，達成共識;只要我們愿意傾聽對方的意見，我們就能以人性的真善美而非假惡丑與人進行交往。

這是為什么我們能夠改革千瘡百孔的死刑體制，為貧困兒童提供健康保險，并使得斯普林菲爾德市的稅收體制更為公平和公正，以有益于工薪階層家庭的原因。這也是為什么我們通過了被那些憤世嫉俗者宣稱永遠不能通過的道德改革法案的

原因。

正是在這里，在斯普林菲爾德市，來自四面八方的人們匯集于此，讓我憶起了美國人民的行為準則——我逐漸相信通過這種準則，我們能夠建設一個更加充滿希望的美國。

緣此，在古老的國會大廈下面，在林肯總統曾經呼吁分裂的議會團結一致的地方，在共同的希望和夢想仍然鮮活的地方，我今天站在你們面前宣布我將競選美國總統。

我承認這一聲明有一點自以為是——甚至有些狂妄。我知道我并未花費很多時間來研究華盛頓的施政方略，但我在那兒待的時間已經足夠讓我認識到華盛頓的施政方略必須要變革。

我們奠基者們的天才之處在于他們設計了可變革的政體。我們應樹立信心，因為我們曾對這個國家進行過變革。面對暴政，一大批愛國志士曾迫使一個帝國屈膝。面對分裂，我們團結整個國家，解放了黑奴。面對大蕭條，我們讓勞動者重回工作崗位，并使數百萬人民脫離了貧困。我們歡迎外來移民，我們將鐵路延伸至西部，我們將宇航員送上月球，我們還聽到了馬丁·路德·金的號召，讓公平似水奔流、正義如泉噴涌。我們已經做過如此多的變革。

每一次，新一代的美國人都會勇敢地承擔并完成需要完成的工作。今天，我們再一次受到了感召——此時正是我們這一代作出回應的時刻。

我知道有些人不相信我們可以完成所有這些事情，我理解他們所持的懷疑態度。畢竟，每四年，兩個政黨的總統候選人都會作出類似的承諾，我想今年也不會例外。所有參加競選總統的人都會去全國各地走訪，提出詳細的計劃，并發表氣勢恢弘的演說;我們所有人將大力宣傳那些自己所具備的特質，證明自己足以勝任領導這個國家。但是多少次，當選舉結束時，五彩紙屑被清理一空后，所有的這些承諾便隨之被淡忘，而游說者和特殊利益集團則開始活動，人們一如既往地轉身、失望，離開這里，繼續為了生存而苦苦掙扎。

因此，這場競選不僅僅關乎我個人，它關乎我們大家——關乎我們共同努力所完成的事情。這場競選應成為你們實現希望與夢想的平臺與途徑。這需要你們貢獻時間、精力和建議——當我們做得正確時，推動我們繼續前進;當我們犯錯時，讓我們知曉錯誤之處。本次競選應恢復公民的意義，恢復我們對共同目標的認同，并讓我們認識到沒有什么艱難險阻可以抵擋千百萬人民要求變革之聲的力量。