当地时间12月16日，美国总统奥巴马在白宫举行年终记者会，总结8年执政任期。

Press Conference by the President

James S. Brady Press Briefing Room

THE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon.  This is the most wonderful press conference of the year.  I've got a list of who’s been naughty and nice to call on.  (Laughter.)  But let me first make a couple of quick points, and then I’ll take your questions.

Typically, I use this yearend press conference to review how far we’ve come over the course of the year.  Today, understandably, I'm going to talk a little bit about how far we’ve come over the past eight years.

As I was preparing to take office[就职;上任], the unemployment rate was on its way to 10 percent.  Today, it’s at 4.6 percent -- the lowest in nearly a decade.  We’ve seen the longest streak[1] of job growth on record, and wages have grown faster over the past few years than at any time in the past 40.

[1]streak：（尤指体育比赛或赌博中）顺的时候，背的时候，运气，手气 a series of successes or failures, especially in a sport or in gambling

When I came into office, 44 million people were uninsured[未保险的;无保险的].  Today, we’ve covered more than 20 million of them.  For the first time in our history, more than 90 percent of Americans are insured.  In fact, yesterday was the biggest day ever for HealthCare.gov.  More than 670,000 Americans signed up to get covered, and more are signing up by the day.

We’ve cut our dependence on foreign oil by more than half, doubled production of renewable energy, enacted the most sweeping reforms[实施最彻底的改革] since FDR to protect consumers and prevent a crisis on Wall Street from punishing Main Street ever again.  None of these actions stifled[2] growth, as critics predicted.

[2]stifle：to prevent something from happening, being expressed, or continuing 阻止；压制，抑制；扼杀

She stifled a cough/yawn/scream/sneeze.

她忍住没有咳嗽／打哈欠／尖叫／打喷嚏。

I don't know how I managed to stifle my anger.

我不知道自己是怎么抑制住了愤怒。

Instead, the stock market has nearly tripled[(使)成三倍,(使)增加两倍].  Since I signed Obamacare into law, our businesses have added more than 15 million new jobs.  And the economy is undoubtedly more durable than it was in the days when we relied on oil from unstable nations and banks took risky bets with your money.

Add it all up, and last year, the poverty rate fell at the fastest rate in almost 50 years, while the median household income grew at the fastest rate on record.  In fact, income gains were actually larger for households at the bottom and the middle than for those at the top.  And we’ve done all this while cutting our deficits[削减赤字] by nearly two-thirds and protecting vital investments that grow the middle class.

在他任期内，美国变得更强大繁荣，引以为傲的内政亮点包括，医改法案的实施让逾2000万美国人得以注册新医保，失业率处于近10年来最低水平，家庭收入中位数增速创历史新高，可再生能源产量翻倍等。

In foreign policy, when I came into office, we were in the midst of two wars.  Now, nearly 180,000 troops are down to 15,000.  Bin Laden, rather than being at large, has been taken off the battlefield, along with thousands of other terrorists.  Over the past eight years, no foreign terrorist organization has successfully executed an attack on our homeland that was directed from overseas.

Through diplomacy, we’ve ensured that Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon -- without going to war with Iran.  We opened up a new chapter with the people of Cuba.  And we brought nearly 200 nations together around a climate agreement that could very well save this planet for our kids.  And almost every country on Earth sees America as stronger and more respected today than they did eight years ago.

外交方面，他将成功击毙恐怖组织头目本·拉登、美古建交、达成伊朗核协议和巴黎气候变化协定等列为主要政绩，强调几乎每个国家都认为美国比8年前“更强大、更受尊重”，他为此感到自豪。

In other words, by so many measures, our country is stronger and more prosperous than it was when we started.

我们的国家变得更强大更繁荣。

That's a situation that I’m proud to leave for my successor.  And it’s thanks to the American people -- to the hard work that you’ve put in, the sacrifices you’ve made for your families and your communities, the businesses that you started or invested in, the way you looked out for one another.  And I could not be prouder to be your President.

Of course, to tout[3] this progress doesn’t mean that we’re not mindful of how much more there is to do.  In this season in particular, we’re reminded that there are people who are still hungry, people who are still homeless; people who still have trouble paying the bills or finding work after being laid off.  There are communities that are still mourning those who have been stolen from us by senseless gun violence, and parents who still are wondering how to protect their kids.

[3]tout：to advertise, talk about, or praise something or someone repeatedly, especially as a way of encouraging people to like, accept, or buy something （尤指为了提高销售额、知名度或推动发展）给…做广告，宣传，赞扬，吹捧

And after I leave office, I intend to continue to work with organizations and citizens doing good across the country on these and other pressing issues to build on the progress that we’ve made.

Around the world, as well, there are hotspots where disputes have been intractable, conflicts have flared up, and people -- innocent people are suffering as a result.  And nowhere is this more terribly true than in the city of Aleppo[阿勒颇(叙利亚城市)].  For years, we’ve worked to stop the civil war in Syria and alleviate human suffering.  It has been one of the hardest issues that I've faced as President.

The world, as we speak, is united in horror at the savage[凶残的;冷酷;严重的] assault by the Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies on the city of Aleppo.  We have seen a deliberate strategy of surrounding, besieging[包围;围攻], and starving innocent civilians. We've seen relentless targeting of humanitarian workers and medical personnel; entire neighborhoods reduced to rubble and dust.

There are continuing reports of civilians being executed.  These are all horrific violations of international law.  Responsibility for this brutality lies in one place alone -- with the Assad regime and its allies Russia and Iran.  And this blood and these atrocities[暴行;凶恶] are on their hands.

We all know what needs to happen.  There needs to be an impartial[公正的;不偏不倚的] international observer force in Aleppo that can help coordinate an orderly evacuation[(把人从危险的地方)撤离,撤出] through safe corridors.  There has to be full access for humanitarian aid, even as the United States continues to be the world’s largest donor of humanitarian aid to the Syrian people.  And, beyond that, there needs to be a broader ceasefire that can serve as the basis for a political rather than a military solution.

That’s what the United States is going to continue to push for, both with our partners and through multilateral institutions like the U.N.

Regretfully, but unsurprisingly, Russia has repeatedly blocked the Security Council[(联合国)安全理事会] from taking action on these issues.  So we’re going to keep pressing the Security Council to help improve the delivery of humanitarian aid to those who are in such desperate need, and to ensure accountability, including continuing to monitor any potential use of chemical weapons in Syria.

And we’re going to work in the U.N. General Assembly as well, both on accountability and to advance a political settlement.  Because it should be clear that although you may achieve tactical victories[实现战术上的胜利], over the long term the Assad regime cannot slaughter its way to legitimacy.

That’s why we'll continue to press for a transition to a more representative government.  And that’s why the world must not avert[4] our eyes to the terrible events that are unfolding.  The Syrian regime and its Russian and Iranian allies are trying to obfuscate[5] the truth.  The world should not be fooled.  And the world will not forget.

[4]avert：to turn away your eyes or thoughts 转移（目光、想法等）；把…转（向别处）

I averted my gaze/eyes while he dressed.

他穿衣服的时候我把目光转向一边。

[5]obfuscate ['ɒbfʌ.skeɪt]

to make something less clear and harder to understand, especially intentionally （尤指故意）使模糊，使糊涂，使困惑

She was criticized for using arguments that obfuscated the main issue.

她被批评使用了混淆主要问题的论点。

So even in a season where the incredible blessings that we know as Americans are all around us, even as we enjoy family and friends and are reminded of how lucky we are, we should also be reminded that to be an American involves bearing burdens and meeting obligations to others.  American values and American ideals are what will lead the way to a safer and more prosperous 2017, both here and abroad.

And by the way, few embody those values and ideals like our brave men and women in uniform and their families.  So I just want to close by wishing all of them a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

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