VOA标准英语2008年-McCain, Obama Campaign After Conventions

Now that the U.S. political conventions are over, the candidates for President and Vice¹ President have begun the final two months of intense campaigning. VOA's Kent Klein reports from Washington.
　

Republican presidential candidate John McCain and his running mate vice presidential nominee2 Sarah Palin attend a campaign event in Cedarburg, Wisconsin, 05 Sep 2008

One day after their party's convention concluded, the Republican presidential nominee, Senator John McCain, and his vice presidential running mate, Alaska state Governor Sarah Palin, started campaigning together in so-called "battleground" states, which will be critical for victory in the November election.

At a rally in the small town of Cedarburg, in the north central state of Wisconsin, Palin praised McCain for consistently supporting the U.S. troop surge in Iraq. Palin called the Democratic presidential nominee, Senator Barack Obama, "wrong on a vital national security issue," and said McCain was one of very few people in Washington who initially³ believed the surge would succeed.

"It seems to me there was one leader in Washington who did predict success, who refused to call retreat, and risked his own career for the sake of the surge and victory in Iraq, and ladies and gentlemen, that man is standing⁴ right next to me, Senator John McCain," she said.

Later, McCain told the crowd he acknowledges that the U.S economy is in trouble, but said his economic plan is better than Obama's.

"I will keep taxes low and cut them where I can," he said. "My opponent will raise your taxes. I will open new markets to our goods and services. My opponent will close them. I'll cut government spending. He wants to increase it. Look at his record. My tax cuts will create jobs. His tax increases, increases. He wants to increase your taxes, and he will eliminate them."

The emphasis on the economy took on greater urgency Friday, with news that the United States lost 84,000 jobs in August, driving the nation's unemployment rate to a five-year high of 6.1 percent.
　

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama speaks at the Schott Glass manufacturing plant in Duryea, Pennsylvania, 05 Sep 2008

Senator Obama campaigned in a factory in the small town of Duryea, Pennsylvania, and promoted his economic plan, while trying to tie McCain to the economic problems during the Bush administration.

"I just think he doesn't get it," he said. "I don't think they have a sense of what people are going through. Because otherwise, why would you be. Well, let me take that back. There may be another reason why you [the Republicans] are not talking about it, and that is, if you've got the kind of record they've got over the last eight years, then, of course, you don't want to spend a lot of time talking about issues."

Obama's running mate, Senator Joe Biden, campaigned in a different part of Pennsylvania Friday. At a union hall in Philadelphia, Biden also discussed the Democrats⁵' economic plan, and talked about the importance of this year's election.

"Literally⁶, the future of the country for the next 20 years is going to be decided⁷ in the next 60 days," he said.

Post-convention polls show the race either even, or Obama with a slight lead. Election Day is November 4.

1 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。

2 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

3 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

4 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

5 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》

6 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。