奥巴马每周电视讲话：总统谈论美国政治局势

Hi, everybody. I'm speaking to you today from Springfield, Illinois.

大家好！今天，我在伊利诺伊州斯普林费尔德市向大家演讲。

I spent eight years in the state senate here. It was a place where, for all our surface differences in a state as diverse as Illinois, my colleagues and I actually shared a lot in common. We fought for our principles, and voted against each other, but because we assumed the best in one another, not the worst, we found room for progress. We bridged differences to get things done.

在这里，我在州参议院度过了8年时间。在这里，我们国家所有表面上的差异与伊利诺伊州一样纷繁复杂，但我和我的同僚们有很多共同点。我们会为了原则争论，在投票上彼此互不相让，但因为我们认为彼此都是最好的，而不是最坏的，所以，我们为政治进步找到了空间。我们在彼此的差异之间寻求共同点，把事情做好。

In my travels through this state, I saw most Americans do the same. Folks know that issues are complicated, and that people with different ideas might have a point. It convinced me that if we just approached our politics the same way we approach our daily lives, with common sense, a commitment to fairness, and the belief that we're all in this together, there's nothing we can't do.

在我行走在这里的路途上，我看到大部分美国人民也是这么做的。人们知道，事情总是复杂的，拥有不同观点的人们还是能找到共同点的。这也让我想到，如果我们对待政治也像我们对待日常生活一样，相信最基本的常识、坚持对公平的承诺、以及我们是一家人的信念，就没有我们做不到的事情。

That's why I announced, right here, in Springfield that I was running for President. And my faith in the generosity 1 and fundamental goodness of the American people is rewarded every day.

因此，我在这里宣布，在斯普林费尔德参选总统。我相信，慷慨大方、心地善良的美国人民每一天都应该得到回报。

But I'll be the first to admit that the tone of our politics hasn't gotten better, but worse. Too many people feel like the system is rigged, and their voices don't matter. And when good people are pushed away from participating in our public life, more powerful and extreme voices will fill the void. They'll be the ones who gain control over decisions that could send a young soldier to war, or allow another economic crisis, or roll back the rights that generations of Americans have fought to secure.

但我也许是第一个承认我们的政治环境没有改善，反而正在恶化的人。有太多的人觉得这个系统被人操控了，人们的意见变得无关紧要。当好人被排挤在外，不再参与政治生活，更多的强权和极端力量则会趁虚而入。他们掌控决策的控制权之后，就会将年轻人送上战场，或是引发另一场经济危机，或是毁掉几代美国人民努力保护的各种公民权利。

The good news is there's also a lot we can do about this, from reducing the influence of money in our politics, to changing the way we draw congressional districts, to simply changing the way we treat each other. That's what I came back here to talk about this week. And I hope you check out my full speech at WhiteHouse.gov.

好消息是，在这方面我们还可以做很多事情，这包括减少金钱对政治的影响，改变国会选区的划定，直接改变对待彼此的方式。这就是我本周回到这里，发表演讲要说的内容。我希望你们访问白宫官网（WhiteHouse.gov），回顾我全部的演讲内容。

One thing I focused on, for example, was how we can make voting easier, not harder, and modernize 2 it for the way we live now. Here in Illinois, a new law allows citizens to register and vote at the polls on Election Day. It also expands early voting, which makes it much easier for working folks and busy parents. We're also considering automatic voter registration 3 for every citizen when they apply for a driver's license 4. And I'm calling on more states to adopt steps like these. Because when more of us vote, the less captive our politics will be to narrow interests – and the better our democracy will be for our children.

例如，我关注的一件事就是，如何让投票更容易，而不是更困难，并让投票与我们的生活一样现代化。在伊利诺伊州，一部新法律实施，允许公民在选举日当天在投票站注册投票，该法延长了提前投票时间，这为工薪人士和忙着带孩子的父母们提供了方便。我们还考虑让每个公民在申请驾照的时候可以自动获得选民登记。我也呼吁更多的州采取同样的措施。因为只有我们参与投票的人更多了，我们的政治被少数既得利益团体把控的几率才能更小，我们也才能给我们的后代留下更好的民主制度。

Nine years after I first announced for this office, I still believe in a politics of hope. And for all the challenges of a changing world; for all the imperfections of our democracy; choosing a politics of hope is something that's entirely 5 up to each of us.

从我发表声明参选总统已经过去9年了，我依然对未来的政治充满希望。面对不断变化的世界的各种挑战，面对我们民主政治中的不完美，选择一个充满未来的政治，从某种程度上来说完全取决于我们每个人自身。

Thanks, everybody.

谢谢大家！