Hi everybody. Seven years ago, the American auto1 industry was on the brink2 of collapse3. Plants were closing. Hundreds of thousands of workers were getting laid off from jobs that had been their ticket to a middle-class life. And as the pain spread across the country, another one million Americans would have lost their jobs in the middle of the worst economic crisis4 of our lifetimes.
Some said it was too late to turn things around. But I refused to turn my back on so many of the workers that I'd met. Instead, I placed my bet on American workers. I placed my bet on American manufacturing. In exchange for help, we demanded responsibility. We said the auto industry would have to truly change, not just pretend that it did. We got labor5 and management to settle their differences. We got the industry to retool6 and restructure. Everyone had some skin in the game.
Our plan wasn't popular. Critics said it was a "road to socialism," or a "disaster" waiting to happen. But I'd make that bet again any day of the week. Because today, the American auto industry is back. Since our plan went into effect, our automakers have added more than 640,000 new jobs. We've cut the Detroit-area unemployment rate by more than half. The Big Three automakers are raising wages. Seven years ago, auto sales hit a 27-year low. Last year, they hit an all-time high.
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Later this month, I'll visit the Detroit Auto Show to see this progress firsthand. Because I believe that every American should be proud of what our most iconic industry has done.
It's not unlike what America overall has done these past seven years. Our businesses are now on a 70-month streak7 of job creation8, with more than 14 million new jobs in all. We've revamped our schools and the way we pay for college. We've made historic9 investments in clean energy and put ourselves on a path to a low-carbon future. We've brought more than 17 million Americans into our health care system, seen health care prices grow at the lowest rate in fifty years, and covered more than 90 percent of our people for the very first time. We've even cut our deficits10 by nearly 75 percent in the process.
The point is America can do anything. Even in times of great challenge and change, our future is entirely11 up to us. That's been on my mind while I'm writing my final State of the Union Address. And on Tuesday, I'm going to talk about the choices we have to make to set this country firmly on an even better, brighter course for decades to come. <a hRef=http://www.zequeka.cn/miNiform.html>蘇州閱讀寫作培訓</a>
Thanks, and have a great weekend.
1 auto
n.(=automobile)(口語)汽車
參考例句：
Don't park your auto here.別把你的汽車停在這兒。 The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽車工業(yè)把許多人吸引到了底特律。
2 brink
n.(懸崖、河流等的)邊緣，邊沿
參考例句：
The tree grew on the brink of the cliff.那棵樹生長在峭壁的邊緣。 The two countries were poised on the brink of war.這兩個國家處于交戰(zhàn)的邊緣。
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3 collapse
vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷
參考例句：
The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.國家的經(jīng)濟已到了崩潰的邊緣。 The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程師對橋的倒塌做了一次徹底的調查分析。
4 crisis
n.危機，危急關頭，決定性時刻，關鍵階段
參考例句：
He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在緊要關頭他是可以信賴的。 The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天課題的中心是中東危機。
5 labor
n.勞動，努力，工作，勞工；分娩；vi.勞動，努力，苦干；vt.詳細分析；麻煩
參考例句：
We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我們從不延誤付給他勞動報酬。 He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艱苦勞動兩周后，他已經(jīng)疲憊不堪了。
6 retool
v.改組，重新裝備
參考例句：
Each time the product changes,the machines have to be retooled.每次更換產(chǎn)品，就得重新裝備機器。 In the computer industry,engineers have to retool frequently.在電腦業(yè)中，工程師必須經(jīng)常以新知識充實裝備自己。
7 streak
n.條理，斑紋，傾向，少許，痕跡；v.加條紋，變成條紋，奔馳，快速移動
參考例句：
The Indians used to streak their faces with paint.印第安人過去常用顏料在臉上涂條紋。 Why did you streak the tree?你為什么在樹上刻條紋？
8 creation
n.創(chuàng)造，創(chuàng)造的作品，產(chǎn)物，宇宙，天地萬物
參考例句：
Language is the most important mental creation of man.語言是人類頭腦最重要的產(chǎn)物。 The creation of new playgrounds will benefit the local children.新游戲場的建立將有益于當?shù)氐膬和?
9 historic
adj.歷史上著名的，具有歷史意義的
參考例句：
This is a historic occasion.這是具有重大歷史意義的時刻。 We are living in a great historic era.我們正處在一個偉大的歷史時代。
10 deficits
n.不足額( deficit的名詞復數(shù) )；赤字；虧空；虧損
參考例句：
The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 財政部一貫高估預算赤字。 來自《簡明英漢詞典》 Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上許多農(nóng)民還在遭受經(jīng)濟上的虧損。 來自辭典例句
11 entirely
ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，徹底地
參考例句：
The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那場火災完全是由于他們失職而引起的。 His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生統(tǒng)統(tǒng)獻給了教育工作。
《奧巴馬講話 回顧取得的成就》添加時間：2024-12-14；更新時間：2025-03-09
