Obama, Romney Campaign in Swing States After Final Debate

 Obama, Romney Campaign in Swing States After Final Debate

WHITE HOUSE — Two weeks before the election, Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate Mitt¹ Romney are intensely seeking votes in several key states that could decide the outcome of the election. Public opinion surveys on Tuesday show the race is virtually tied.

One day after the last of their three presidential debates, President Obama and former Massachusetts Governor Romney traveled across America, looking for an advantage among the electorate².

At a campaign stop in Delray Beach, Florida, Obama said his opponent shifted his positions on several issues in the debates.

“In all seriousness, I mean, we are accustomed to seeing politicians change their positions from, like, four years ago.  We are not accustomed to seeing politicians change their positions from four days ago,” Obama said.

Romney held a rally near Las Vegas, Nevada, where he said the president has no plan to improve the economy.

“We have gone through four debates, with the vice³ presidential debate and my debates, and we have not heard an agenda from the president.  And that is why his campaign is taking on water and our campaign is full speed ahead,” Romney said.

Obama responded to criticism that he has not specified⁴ his plan for the next four years by releasing a booklet, laying out where he intends to lead the country during a second term in office.

The president’s newly-released plan calls for instituting tax breaks for companies that create jobs, reducing dependence⁵ on foreign oil, increasing spending for education and job training, cutting the U.S. deficit⁶, and rebuilding the nation's infrastructure⁷.

After leaving Florida, Obama made yet another trip to Ohio, a state both campaigns say they need to win.

In Dayton, the president made a joint⁸ campaign appearance with Vice President Joe Biden.

At a rally in Toledo earlier in the day, Biden sharply criticized Governor Romney for comments he made on foreign policy during Monday night's debate.

“Whether it was the strength of the United States Navy, or our plans for Afghanistan, or how to handle Iran, or our relationship with Israel -- you got a very clear sense that these guys just do not get it,” Biden said.

Governor Romney and his running mate, Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan, shared the stage in Nevada.

Ryan criticized Mr. Obama’s performance on his handling of the U.S. economy.

“We do not have to settle for 23 million Americans struggling to find work.  We do not have to settle for 11.8 percent unemployment in Nevada.  We do not have to settle for all these underwater mortgages [i.e., mortgages that are more expensive than than the value of their corresponding properties].  We do not have to settle for 15 percent of our fellow countrymen and women living in poverty,” Ryan said.

Although public opinion surveys show that most Americans believe President Obama won Monday’s debate, Governor Romney has closed the gap in many swing states.

1 mitt   

n.棒球手套，拳击手套，无指手套；vt.铐住，握手

参考例句：

• I gave him a baseball mitt for his birthday.为祝贺他的生日，我送给他一只棒球手套。
• Tom squeezed a mitt and a glove into the bag.汤姆把棒球手套和手套都塞进袋子里。

2 electorate   

n.全体选民；选区

参考例句：

• The government was responsible to the electorate.政府对全体选民负责。
• He has the backing of almost a quarter of the electorate.他得到了几乎1/4选民的支持。

3 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

4 specified   

adj.特定的

参考例句：

• The architect specified oak for the wood trim. 那位建筑师指定用橡木做木饰条。
• It is generated by some specified means. 这是由某些未加说明的方法产生的。

5 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

6 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

7 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

8 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。