英語演講原文：奧巴馬演講簽署金融改革法案1

1、奧巴 馬 演 講 簽 署金融改革法案 1THE PRESIDENT: Well, good morning, everyone.AUDIENCE: Good morning.THE PRESIDENT: We are gathered in the heart of our nation s capital, surrounded by memorials to leaders and citizens who served our nation in its earliest days and in its days of greatest trial. Today is such a ti

2、me for America.Over the past two years, we have faced the worst recession since the Great Depression. Eight million people lost their jobs. Tens of millions saw the value of their homes and retirement 1 savings 2 plummet 3 （垂直落 下） . Countless 4 businesses have been unable to get the loans they need

3、and many have been forced to shut their doors. And although the economy is growing again, too many people are still feeling the pain of the downturn （衰退， 低迷） .Now, while a number of factors led to such a severe recession, the primary cause was a breakdown 5 in our financial system. It was a crisis b

4、orn of a failure of responsibility from certain corners of Wall Street to the halls6of power in Washington. For years, our financial sector 6 was governed by antiquated 7（ 廢棄） and poorly enforcedrules that allowed some to game the system and take risks that endangered the entire economy.Unscrupulous

5、 （肆無忌憚的，寡廉鮮恥的） lenders lockedconsumers into complex loans with hidden costs. Firms like AIG placed massive, risky 8 bets with borrowed money. And while the rules left abuse and excess unchecked, they also left taxpayers 10 on the hook if a big bank or financial institution ever failed.Now, even befo

6、re the crisis hit, I went to Wall Street and I called for common-sense reforms to protect consumers and our economy as a whole. And soon after taking office, I proposed a set of reforms to empower consumers and investors 11 , to bring the shadowy deals that caused this crisis into the light of day,

7、and to put a stop to taxpayer 9 bailouts once and for all （一 勞永逸地， 徹底地） . （Applause.） Today, thanks to a lot of people in this room, those reforms will become the law of the land.For the last year, Chairmen Barney Frank and Chris Dodd have worked day and night - （applause） - Barney and Chris have wo

8、rked day and night to bring about this reform. And I am profoundly grateful to them. I would be remiss 12 (怠慢 的， 遲緩 的) if I didn't also express my appreciation 13 toSenator Harry 14 Reid and Speaker Nancy Pelosi for their leadership. It wouldn t have happened without them. (Applause.)Passing thi

9、s bill was no easy task. To get there, we had to overcome the furious lobbying of an array of powerful interest groups and a partisan 15 minority determined 16 to block change. So the members who are here today, both on the stage and in the audience, they have done a great service in devoting so muc

10、h time and expertise 17 to this effort, to looking out for the public interests and not the special interests. (Applause.) And I also want to thank the three Republican senators who put partisanship 18 (黨派性， 黨派偏 見 ) aside - (applause) - judged this bill on the merits ( 優(yōu) 點(diǎn)，功 績 ) , and voted for refo

11、rm.We regrateful to them. (Applause.) And the Republican House members. (Applause.) Good to see you, Joe. (Applause.)Now, let s put this in perspective (正確地) . The fact is, the financial industry is central to our nation s ability togrow, to prosper 19 , to compete and to innovate 20 . There are a l

12、ot of banks that understand and fulfill 21 this vital role, and there are a whole lot of bankers who want to do right -and do right - by their customers. This reform will help foster （培養(yǎng)，養(yǎng)育） innovation, not hamper 22 it. It is designed to make sure that everybody follows the same set of rules, so th

13、at firms compete on price and quality, not on tricks and not on traps.It demands accountability and responsibility from everyone.It provides certainty to everybody, from bankers to farmers to business owners to consumers. And unless your business model depends on cutting corners or bilking （欺 騙 ， 詐騙

14、 ） your customers, you ve got nothing to fear fromreform. （Applause.）Now, for all those Americans who are wondering what Wall Street reform means for you, hereyou csawnheaxtpect. Ifyou ve ever applied 23 for a credit card, a student loan, or a mortgage, you know the feeling of signing your name to p

15、ages of barely understandable fine print. What often happens as a result is that many Americans are caught by hidden fees and penalties, or saddled （承受， 負(fù) 擔(dān)） with loans they can t afford.That s what happened to Robin 24 Fox, hit with a massive rate increase on her credit card balance even though she

16、 paid her bills on time. That s what happened to AndrewGiordano, who discovered hundreds of dollars in overdraft 25 fees on his bank statement - fees he had no idea he might face. Both are here today. Well, with this law, unfair rate hikes, like the one that hit Robin, will end for good. (Applause.)

17、 And we llensure that people like Andrew aren t unwittingly caught by overdraft fees when they sign up for a checking account. (Applause.) 文章重點(diǎn)單詞 注 釋 ：1 retirementn.退休，退職參考例句：She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries. 她想享受退休生活而不必為 金錢 擔(dān)憂 。I have to put everything awa

18、y for my retirement. 我必 須 把一切都積蓄起來以便退休后用。2savingsn.存款，儲(chǔ)畜參考例句：I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那樣 會(huì)把我的 積 蓄用光的。到 這時(shí) ，他的存款已全部用完。By this time he had used up all his savings.3 plummetvi.（價(jià)格、水平等）驟然下跌；n.鉛墜；重壓物參考例句：Mengniu and Yili have seen their shares plummet since the

19、 incidentbroke. 自事件 發(fā) 生以來，蒙牛和伊利的股票大幅下跌。Even if rice prices were to plummet,other brakes on poverty alleviation remain. 就算大米價(jià)格下跌，其它阻止導(dǎo) 致 貧 困的因素仍然存在。4 countlessadj. 無數(shù)的，多得不計(jì) 其數(shù)的參考例句：In the war countless innocent people lost their lives. 在這場戰(zhàn) 爭中無數(shù)無辜的人 喪 失了性命。I've told you countless times. 我已 經(jīng)告 訴你無

20、數(shù)遍了。5 breakdownn.垮，衰竭；損壞，故障，倒塌參考例句：She suffered a nervous breakdown. 她患神 經(jīng) 衰弱。The plane had a breakdown in the air,but it was fortunately removed bythe ace pilot. 飛 機(jī)在空中發(fā)生了故障，但幸運(yùn)的是被王牌 駕駛員 排除了。6sectorn.部門，部分；防御地段，防區(qū)；扇形參考例句：The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口 產(chǎn)業(yè) 將促 進(jìn)經(jīng)濟(jì) 復(fù) 蘇。The enemy h

21、ave attacked the British sector. 敵人已 進(jìn) 攻英國防區(qū)。7antiquatedadj. 陳 舊的， 過時(shí) 的參考例句：Many factories are so antiquated they are not worth saving.很多工廠 過于陳 舊落后，已不值 得挽救。A train of antiquated coaches was waiting for us at the siding.一列 陳 舊的火 車 在 側(cè)線 上等著我 們 。8riskyadj. 有 風(fēng)險(xiǎn) 的，冒 險(xiǎn) 的參考例句：It may be risky but we will c

22、hance it anyhow. 這可能有危險(xiǎn) ，但我們無論如何要冒一冒 險(xiǎn) 。He is well aware how risky this investment is. 他心里 對這項(xiàng) 投 資 的 風(fēng)險(xiǎn) 十分 清楚。9taxpayern.納稅人參考例句：The new scheme will run off with a lot of the taxpayer's money.這項(xiàng) 新計(jì)劃將用去 納 稅人 許 多 錢 。The taxpayer are unfavourably disposed towards the recent tax increase. 納 稅者 對最近的增

23、加稅收十分反感。10taxpayers納 稅人， 納 稅的機(jī)構(gòu) （ taxpayer 的名 詞 復(fù)數(shù) ） 參考例句：Finance for education comes from taxpayers. 教育 經(jīng)費(fèi) 來自 納 稅人。She was declaiming against the waste of the taxpayers' money.她慷慨 陳詞 猛烈抨 擊對納 稅人金錢 的浪 費(fèi) 。investorsn.投資者，出資者（investor的名詞復(fù)數(shù)）參考例句：a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dolla

24、rs詐 取投 資者幾百萬元的 騙 子a cash bonanza for investors 投資者的 賺錢 機(jī)會(huì)12 remissadj. 不小心的， 馬 虎 參考例句：It was remiss of him to forget her birthday. 他竟忘了她的生日， 實(shí)在是糊涂。I would be remiss if I did not do something about it.如果我 對此不做點(diǎn)兒什么就是不 負(fù)責(zé) 任。13appreciationn.評價(jià)；欣賞；感謝；領(lǐng)會(huì)，理解；價(jià)格上漲參考例句：I would like to express my appreciation

25、 and thanks to you all.我想 對 你們所有人表達(dá)我的感激和 謝 意。I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我將送 給他們 一筆捐款以感謝 他 們 的幫助。14harryvt. 掠 奪 ，蹂 躪 ，使苦惱參考例句：Today,people feel more hurried and harried. 今天，人 們 感到更加忙碌和苦 惱。Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan. 奧巴 馬 用醫(yī)改掠奪 了商界。15 partis

26、anadj. 黨派性的；游擊隊(duì) 的； n. 游擊隊(duì)員 ；黨徒參考例句：In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels. 憤怒之中，他們 忘掉一切黨派之爭。The numerous newly created partisan detachments began workingslowly towards that region. 許多新建的游擊隊(duì) 都開始慢慢地向那里移 動(dòng)。16 determined adj. 堅(jiān) 定的；有決心的參考例句：I have determined on going to Tibet after graduati

27、on.我已決定 畢業(yè) 后去西藏。He determined to view the rooms behind the office. 他決定 查看一下 辦公 室后面的房間 。17 expertisen.專門知識(shí)（或技能等），專長參考例句：We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes. 他斜坡滑雪的技能使我們贊嘆 不已。You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.讓 你真正在 專業(yè) 技 術(shù) 上有一個(gè)全新的突破。18Partisanshipn. 黨派性 , 黨派偏

28、見參考例句：Her violent partisanship was fighting Soames's battle.她的激烈偏袒等于替索米斯賣 氣力。There was a link of understanding between them, more important thanaffection or partisanship. ' 比起人 間 的感情，比起相同的政見 ， 這一點(diǎn)都來得格外重要。 來自英 漢 文學(xué)19 prosper9v.成功，興隆，昌盛；使成功，使昌隆，繁榮參考例句：With her at the wheel,the company began to prosper. 有了她當(dāng)主管，公 司開始興 旺起來。It is my earnest wish that this company will continue to prosper. 我真 誠希 望 這 家公司會(huì)繼續(xù)興 旺 發(fā) 達(dá)。20 innovateV.革新，變革，創(chuàng)始參考例句：We must innovate in order to make progress. 我們 必須改革以便取得進(jìn)步。It is necessary to innovate and develop