在这个有史以来的最佳竞选团队和有史以来的最佳志愿者队伍中，你们有些人是这次新加入进来的，有些人则是一开始就在我身边。但你们所有人都属于一个大家庭。无论你的工作是什么，无论你从哪里来，你们都将获得我们共同创造的历史记忆，你们都将被一位充满感激之情的总统终生感激。感谢你们始终充满信心，无论是在高峰还是在低谷。你们鼓舞着我走完整个选举过程，我对你们所做的每件事、你们所做的每项不可思议的工作将一直充满感激。

　　I know that political campaigns can sometimes seem small, even silly. And that provides plenty of fodder for the cynics that tell us that politics is nothing more than a contest of egos or the domain of special interests. But if you ever get the chance to talk to folks who turned out at our rallies and crowded along a rope line in a high school gym, or saw folks working late in a campaign office in some tiny county far away from home, you’ll discover something else.

　　我知道政治角力有时会显得小家子气甚至愚蠢。它为愤世嫉俗者提供了足够的口实，他们告诉我们政治不过是自负者之间的竞争，是特殊利益集团的地盘。但如果你曾经有机会与参加我们集会的那些人以及高中体育馆内挤在隔离绳外的那些人攀谈，或者看到那些在远离家乡的偏远小县的竞选办公室内加班工作的人，你会发现一些别的东西。

　　You’ll hear the determination in the voice of a young field organizer who’s working his way through college and wants to make sure every child has that same opportunity. You’ll hear the pride in the voice of a volunteer who’s going door to door because her brother was finally hired when the local auto plant added another shift. You’ll hear the deep patriotism in the voice of a military spouse who’s working the phones late at night to make sure that no one who fights for this country ever has to fight for a job or a roof over their head when they come home.

　　你将从一位年轻的活动现场组织者的声音里听到他的决心，他边在大学里学习边从事助选工作，他希望确保每个孩子都能拥有同样的机会。你将从一位志愿者的声音里听到她的骄傲，她挨门动员选民是因为她哥哥终因当地一家汽车制造厂增加了一个班次而有了工作。你将从一对军人夫妇的声音里听到深深的爱国情怀。他们深夜时还在接听选举电话，以确保那些曾经为这个国家作战的人不会返回家园时还要为得到一份工作或栖身之所而苦苦争斗。

　　That’s why we do this. That’s what politics can be. That’s why elections matter. It’s not small, it’s big. It’s important. Democracy in a nation of 300 million can be noisy and messy and complicated. We have our own opinions. Each of us has deeply held beliefs. And when we go through tough times, when we make big decisions as a country, it necessarily stirs passions, stirs up controversy.

　　正因为如此，我们要进行选举。这是政治所能够实现的。正因为如此，选举很重要。这不是小事，而是大事，是至关重要的事。在一个有三亿人口的国家实行民主制度可能嘈杂不堪、一团混乱、情况复杂。我们有自己的观点。我们每个人都有自己深信的信仰。当我们经历艰难时期，当我们作为一个国家做出重大决定时，这必然会激发热情，也必然会引发争议。

　　That won’t change after tonight, and it shouldn’t. These arguments we have are a mark of our liberty. We can never forget that as we speak people in distant nations are risking their lives right now just for a chance to argue about the issues that matter, the chance to cast their ballots like we did today.

　　今晚过后，这都不会改变，也不应该改变。我们进行的这些争论恰恰体现了我们的自由。我们永远不应忘记，就在我们讲话之际，遥远国度的人们现在正冒着生命危险，仅仅是为了获得一个能够对重要问题进行争论、像我们今天这样投票的机会。

　　But despite all our differences, most of us share certain hopes for America’s future. We want our kids to grow up in a country where they have access to the best schools and the best teachers. A country that lives up to its legacy as the global leader in technology and discovery and innovation, with all the good jobs and new businesses that follow.

　　不过，尽管我们存在这样那样的分歧，我们大多数人都对美国的未来有着某些共同的希望。我们希望我们的孩子成长的国家能够让他们上最好的学校、接受最好老师的教导。一个无愧于全球技术、探索和创新领袖光辉历史的国家，倘能如此，各种好工作和新企业将随之而来。

　　We want our children to live in an America that isn’t burdened by debt, that isn’t weakened by inequality, that isn’t threatened by the destructive power of a warming planet. We want to pass on a country that’s safe and respected and admired around the world, a nation that is defended by the strongest military on earth and the best troops this – this world has ever known. But also a country that moves with confidence beyond this time of war, to shape a peace that is built on the promise of freedom and dignity for every human being.

　　我们希望我们的孩子能够生活在一个没有债务之累、没有不公之苦、没有全球变暖带来的破坏之虞的美国。我们希望留给后代一个安全、受到全球尊重和赞赏的国家，一个由全球有史以来最强大的军事力量和最好的部队保卫的国家，一个满怀信心走过战争、在人人享有自由和尊严的承诺之上构建和平的国家。

　　We believe in a generous America, in a compassionate America, in a tolerant America, open to the dreams of an immigrant’s daughter who studies in our schools and pledges to our flag. To the young boy on the south side of Chicago who sees a life beyond the nearest street corner. To the furniture worker’s child in North Carolina who wants to become a doctor or a scientist, an engineer or an entrepreneur, a diplomat or even a president – that’s the future we hope for. That’s the vision we share. That’s where we need to go – forward. That’s where we need to go.

　　我们坚信一个慷慨的美国、一个富有同情心的美国、一个宽容的美国。美国向一位移民的女儿的梦想打开了大门，让她有机会在我们的学校学习、对着我们的国旗宣誓;美国向芝加哥南部地区的一个小男孩打开了大门，让有机会他看到一个最近街角以外的远大人生;美国向北卡罗来纳州的一位家具工人的孩子打开了大门，让他有机会实现自己当医生或科学家、工程师或企业家、外交官甚至是总统的梦想，这是我们希望的未来。这是我们共同的愿景。这是我们奔赴的方向，向前的方向。这是我们需要实现的目标。