奥巴马国情咨文演说（中英文对照）

In other words, we know what needs to be done. And as we speak, bipartisan groups in both chambers are working diligently to draft a bill, and I applaud their efforts. So let’s get this done. Send me a comprehensive immigration reform bill in the next few months, and I will sign it right away. And America will be better for it. (Applause.) Let’s get it done. Let’s get it done.

换言之，我们知道自己需要做些什么。正如之前已经提到的，国会参众两院的有关团体正在勉力草拟一个法案，我对他们的努力表示赞赏。那么，让我们做好这件事吧。几个月以后请把移民制度全面改革的草案交给我，我会立即予以签署。美国将会因此变得刚好。(掌声)让我们做好这件事。让我们做好它。

But we can’t stop there. We know our economy is stronger when our wives, our mothers, our daughters can live their lives free from discrimination in the workplace, and free from the fear of domestic violence. Today, the Senate passed the Violence Against Women Act that Joe Biden originally wrote almost 20 years ago. And I now urge the House to do the same. (Applause.) Good job, Joe. And I ask this Congress to declare that women should earn a living equal to their efforts, and finally pass the Paycheck Fairness Act this year. (Applause.)

不过我们也不能就此止步。我们清楚，只有当我们的妻子、母亲、女儿能够免于在职场受歧视，免于家庭暴力，我们的经济才会更加强大。今天，参议院通过了最初由现任副总统乔·拜登将近20年前草拟的防止对妇女施暴法案，我希望众议院接下来也会予以批准。(掌声)干得好，乔。我还要请求国会宣布，女性应该得到与之付出相配的回报，并在今年内最终通过工资公平法案。(掌声)

We know our economy is stronger when we reward an honest day’s work with honest wages. But today, a full-time worker making the minimum wage earns $14,500 a year. Even with the tax relief we put in place, a family with two kids that earns the minimum wage still lives below the poverty line. That’s wrong. That’s why, since the last time this Congress raised the minimum wage, 19 states have chosen to bump theirs even higher.

我们知道，只有当我们辛勤的工作获得体面的报酬时，我们的经济才会更加强大。但现在的情况是，一个全职工人每年最低工资仅为1.45万美元。即使把免税算上，一个拥有两个孩子的家庭最低工资仍处于贫困线以下。那是不对劲的。这就是为什么上次国会提高最低工资标准后，有19个州又在此基础上额外提高了标准。

Tonight, let’s declare that in the wealthiest nation on Earth, no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty, and raise the federal minimum wage to $9.00 an hour. (Applause.) We should be able to get that done. (Applause.)

今晚，让我们在这个世上最富有的国家里宣告，没有一个全职工作者会被迫生活在贫困中，宣告将联邦最低工资标准提高至每小时9美元。(掌声)我们一定能够做好这件事。(掌声)

This single step would raise the incomes of millions of working families. It could mean the difference between groceries or the food bank; rent or eviction; scraping by or finally getting ahead. For businesses across the country, it would mean customers with more money in their pockets. And a whole lot of folks out there would probably need less help from government. In fact, working folks shouldn’t have to wait year after year for the minimum wage to go up while CEO pay has never been higher. So here’s an idea that Governor Romney and I actually agreed on last year -- let’s tie the minimum wage to the cost of living, so that it finally becomes a wage you can live on. (Applause.)

这一步骤将提高几百万个工作家庭的收入。这可能意味着，原来靠救济券领取食品的人能够自己购买生活用品，原来被逐出房子的人能够租住下去，原来被生活抛弃的讲出人头地。对于全国的企业来说，这意味着拥有更多钱包满满的消费者。而对穷困人群来说，可能更少依赖于政府的救济。实际上，劳动者不必要一年又一年地等待最低工资标准的上升，而只需限制企业高管们的报酬上涨。这就是罗姆尼州长和我去年就已达成的共识，让我们将最低工资标准与生活成本挂钩，这样一来，你的最低标准总是能够支撑你的生活所需。(掌声)

Tonight, let’s also recognize that there are communities in this country where no matter how hard you work, it is virtually impossible to get ahead. Factory towns decimated from years of plants packing up. Inescapable pockets of poverty, urban and rural, where young adults are still fighting for their first job. America is not a place where the chance of birth or circumstance should decide our destiny. And that’s why we need to build new ladders of opportunity into the middle class for all who are willing to climb them.

今晚，也让我们承认，这个国家确有一些人群他们无论怎么苦干都难以出人头地。一些工厂长期停工衰败。不可避免的贫困，无论城乡，年轻劳动力依旧为挣得第一份工作争破头。人们的命运不应该被他的出生状况和环境所决定，美国不是这样一个地方。这就是为什么我们要搭建新的机会的阶梯，让所有愿意攀登的人步入中产阶层的行列。

Let’s offer incentives to companies that hire Americans who’ve got what it takes to fill that job opening, but have been out of work so long that no one will give them a chance anymore. Let’s put people back to work rebuilding vacant homes in run-down neighborhoods. And this year, my administration will begin to partner with 20 of the hardest-hit towns in America to get these communities back on their feet. We’ll work with local leaders to target resources at public safety, and education, and housing.

让我们对那些为长期失业人群提供就业岗位的公司进行奖励。让我们引导人们重新建设那些衰败小区里冷落的家。今年，我的政府将帮助全国20个遭受贫困打击最严重的城镇重建家园。我们将与当地领导人一起，为他们争取公共安全、教育以及住房方面的资源。

We’ll give new tax credits to businesses that hire and invest. And we’ll work to strengthen families by removing the financial deterrents to marriage for low-income couples, and do more to encourage fatherhood -- because what makes you a man isn’t the ability to conceive a child; it’s having the courage to raise one. And we want to encourage that. We want to help that. (Applause.)

我们将通过减税鼓励企业用工和投资。我们将通过消除夫妻结婚的资金门槛来巩固家庭，并且进一步激励父亲的支撑力——因为男人之所以为男人并不是他有生孩子的能力，而是有养育孩子的勇气。而我们就是想要对此有所激励，有所帮助。(掌声)