米歇尔奥巴马民主党全国大会演讲稿(中英文)

奥巴马夫人米歇尔的演讲稿

First Lady Michelle Obama:

Thank

you

so

much,

Elaine…we

are

so

grateful

for

your

family’s

service

and

sacrifice…and we will always have your back.

Over the past few years as First Lady, I have had the extraordinary privilege of traveling all

across this country.

And everywhere I’ve gone, in the people I’ve met, and the stories I’ve heard, I have seen

the very best of the American spirit.

I have seen it in the incredible kindness and warmth that people have shown me and my

family, especially our girls.

I’ve

seen

it

in

teachers

in

a

near

-bankrupt

school

district

who

vowed

to

keep

teaching

without pay.

I’ve seen it in people who become heroes at a moment’s notice, diving into harm’s way to

save

others…flying

across

the

country

to

put

out

a

fire…driving

for

hours

to

bail

out a

flooded town.

And

I’ve

seen

it

in

our

men

and

women

in

uniform

and

our

proud

military

families…in

wounded warriors who tell me they’re not just going to walk again, they’re going to run,

and they’re going to run marathons…in the young man blinded by a bomb in Afghanistan

who said, simply, “…I’d give my eyes 100 times again to have the chance to do what I

have done and what I can still do.”

Every

day,

the

people

I meet

inspire me…every

day,

they

make

me

proud…every

day

they remind me how blessed we are to live in the greatest nation on earth.

Serving

as

your

First

Lady

is

an

honor

and

a

privilege…but

back

when

we

first

came

together four years ago, I still had some concerns about this journey we’d begun.

While

I

believe

d

deeply

in

my

husband’s

vision

for

this

country…and

I

was

certain

he

would

make

an

extraordinary

President…like

any

mother,

I

was

worried

about

what

it

would mean for our girls if he got that chance.

How would we keep them grounded under the glare of the national spotlight?

How would they feel being uprooted from their school, their friends, and the only home

they’d ever known?

Our life

before

moving to Washington was

filled with

simple

joys…Saturdays at soccer

games, Sundays at grandma’s house…and a da

te

night for Barack and me

was

either

dinner or a movie, because as an exhausted mom, I couldn’t stay awake for both.

And the truth is, I loved the life we had built for our girls…I deeply loved the man I had built

that life with…and I didn’t want that to

change if he became President.

I loved Barack just the way he was.

You see, even though back then Barack was Senator and a presidential candidate…to me,

he was still the guy who’d picked me up for our dates in a car that was so rusted out, I

could actua

lly see the pavement going by through a hole in the passenger side door…he

was the guy whose proudest possession was a coffee table he’d found in a dumpster, and

whose only pair of decent shoes was half a size too small.

But

when

Barack

started

telling

me

about

his

family

that’s

when

I

knew

I

had

found

a

kindred spirit, someone whose values and upbringing were so much like mine.

You see, Barack and I were both raised by families who didn’t have much in the way of

money or material possessions but who had given us something far more valuable their

unconditional love, their unflinching sacrifice, and the chance to go places they had never

imagined for themselves.

My father was a pump operator at the city water plant, and he was diagnosed with Multiple

Sclerosis when my brother and I were young.

And even as a kid, I knew there were plenty of days when he was in pain…I knew there

were plenty of mornings when it was a struggle for him to simply get out of bed.

But

every

morning,

I

watched

my

father

wake

up

with

a

smile,

grab

his

walker,

prop

himself up against the bathroom sink, and slowly shave and button his uniform.

And when he returned home after a long day’s work, my brother and I would stand at the

top

of

the

stairs

to

our

little

apartment,

patiently

wa

iting

to

greet

him…watching

as

he

reached down to lift one leg, and then the other, to slowly climb his way into our arms.

But despite these challenges, my dad hardly ever missed a day of work…he and my mom

were determined to give me and my brother the kind of education they could only dream

of.

And when my brother and I finally made it to college, nearly all of our tuition came from

student loans and grants.

But my dad still had to pay a tiny portion of that tuition himself.

And

every

semester,

he

was

determined

to

pay

that

bill

right

on

time,

even

taking

out

loans when he fell short.

He was so proud to be sending his kids to college…and he made sure we never missed a

registration deadline because his check was late.

You see, for my dad, that’s what i

t meant to be a man.

Like so many of us, that was the measure of his success in life being able to earn a decent

living that allowed him to support his family.

And as I got to know Barack, I realized that even though he’d grown up all the way across

the

country, he’d been brought up just like me.

Barack was raised by a single mother who struggled to pay the bills, and by grandparents

who stepped in when she needed help.

Barack’s grandmother started out as a secretary at a community bank…and she moved

qu

ickly up the ranks…but like so many women, she hit a glass ceiling.

And for years, men no more qualified than she was men she had actually trained were

promoted

up

the

ladder

ahead

of

her,

earning

more

and

more

money

while

Barack’s

family continued to scrape by.

But day after day, she kept on waking up at dawn to catch the bus…arriving at work before

anyone else…giving her best without complaint or regret.

And she would often tell Barack, “So long as you kids do well, Bar, that’s all that really

matters.

”

Like so many American families, our families weren’t asking for much.

They didn’t begrudge anyone else’s success or care that others had much more than they

did…in fact, they admired it.

They simply believed in that fundamental American promise that,

even if you don’t start

out with much, if you work hard and do what you’re supposed to do, then you should be

able to build a decent life for yourself and an even better life for your kids and grandkids.

That’s how they raised us…that’s what we learned fr

om their example.

We learned about dignity and decency that how hard you work matters more than how

much you make…that helping others means more than just getting ahead yourself.

We

learned

about

honesty

and

integrity

that

the

truth

matters…that

you

don’

t

take

shortcuts or play by your own set of rules…and success doesn’t count unless you earn it

fair and square.

We learned about gratitude and humility that so many people had a hand in our success,

from the teachers who inspired us to the janitors who ke

pt our school clean…and we were

taught to value everyone’s contribution and treat everyone with respect.

Those are the values Barack and I and so many of you are trying to pass on to our own

children.

That’s who we are.

And standing before you four year

s ago, I knew that I didn’t want any of that to change if

Barack became President.

Well,

today,

after

so

many

struggles

and

triumphs

and

moments

that

have

tested

my

husband in ways I never could have imagined, I have seen firsthand that being president

do

esn’t change who you are it reveals who you are.

You see, I’ve gotten to see up close and personal what being president really looks like.

And I’ve seen how the issues that come across a President’s desk are always the hard

ones

the

problems

where

no

amount

of

data

or

numbers

will

get

you

to

the

right

answer…the judgment calls where the stakes are so high, and there is no margin for error.

And as President, you can get all kinds of advice from all kinds of people.

But at the end of the day, when it comes time to make that decision, as President, all you

have to guide you are your values, and your vision, and the life experiences that make you

who you are.

So when it comes to rebuilding our economy, Barack is thinking about folks like my dad

and like his grandmother.

He’s thinking about the pride that comes from a hard day’s work.

That’s why he signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act to help women get equal pay for

equal work.

That’s why he cut taxes for working families and small businesses and fought

to get the

auto industry back on its feet.

That’s how he brought our economy from the brink of collapse to creating jobs again jobs

you can raise a family on, good jobs right here in the United States of America.

When it comes to the health of our families, Barack refused to listen to all those folks who

told him to leave health reform for another day, another president.

He didn’t care whether it was the easy thing to do politically that’s not how he was raised

he cared that it was the right thing to do.

He did it because he believes that here in America, our grandparents should be able to

afford their medicine…our kids should be able to see a doctor when they’re sick…and no

one in this country should ever go broke because of an accident or illness.

And he believes that women are more than capable of making our own choices about our

bodies and our health care…that’s what my husband stands for.

When it comes to giving our kids the education they deserve, Barack knows that like me

and like so many of you

, he never could’ve attended college without financial aid.

And believe it or not, when we were first married, our combined monthly student loan bills

were actually higher than our mortgage.

We were so young, so in love, and so in debt.

That’s

why

Barac

k

has

fought

so

hard

to

increase

student

aid

and

keep

interest

rates

down, because he wants every young person to fulfill their promise and be able to attend

college without a mountain of debt.

So in the end, for Barack, these issues aren’t political they’re personal.

Because Barack knows what it means when a family struggles.

He knows what it means to want something more for your kids and grandkids.

Barack knows the American Dream because he’s lived it…and he wants everyone in this

country to have that

same opportunity, no matter who

we

are, or where we’re

from, or

what we look like, or who we love.

And he believes that when you’ve worked hard, and done well, and walked through that

doorway of opportunity…you do not slam it shut behind you…you reach ba

ck, and you

give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed.

So when people ask me whether being in the White House has changed my husband, I

can honestly say that when it comes to his character, and his convictions, and his heart,