虽然我们的挑战是可畏的，但我们的力量也是可畏的。以下小编整理的克林顿两届就职演讲稿，供大家参考，希望大家能够有所收获!
My fellow citizens :
Today we celebrate the mystery of American renewal.
This ceremony is held in the depth of winter. But, by the words we speak and the faces we show the world, we force the spring. A spring reborn in the world&39;s oldest democracy, that brings forth the vision and courage to reinvent America.
When our founders boldly declared America&39;s independence to the world and our purposes to the Almighty, they knew that America, to endure, would have to change. Not change for change&39;s sake, but change to preserve America&39;s ideals; life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness. Though we march to the music of our time, our mission is timeless. Each generation of Americans must define what it means to be an American.
On behalf of our nation, I salute my predecessor, President Bush, for his half-century of service to America. And I thank the millions of men and women whose steadfastness and sacrifice triumphed over Depression, fascism and Communism.
Today, a generation raised in the shadows of the Cold War assumes new responsibilities in a world warmed by the sunshine of freedom but threatened still by ancient hatreds and new plagues.
Raised in unrivaled prosperity, we inherit an economy that is still the world&39;s strongest, but is weakened by business failures, stagnant wages, increasing inequality, and deep divisions among our people.
When George Washington first took the oath I have just sworn to uphold, news traveled slowly across the land by horseback and across the ocean by boat. Now, the sights and sounds of this ceremony are broadcast instantaneously to billions around the world.
Communications and commerce are global; investment is mobile; technology is almost magical; and ambition for a better life is now universal. We earn our livelihood in peaceful competition with people all across the earth.
Profound and powerful forces are shaking and remaking our world, and the urgent question of our time is whether we can make change our friend and not our enemy.
This new world has already enriched the lives of millions of Americans who are able to compete and win in it. But when most people are working harder for less; when others cannot work at all; when the cost of health care devastates families and threatens to bankrupt many of our enterprises, great and small; when fear of crime robs law-abiding citizens of their freedom; and when millions of poor children cannot even imagine the lives we are calling them to lead, we have not made change our friend.
We know we have to face hard truths and take strong steps. But we have not done so. Instead, we have drifted, and that drifting has eroded our resources, fractured our economy, and shaken our confidence.
Though our challenges are fearsome, so are our strengths. And Americans have ever been a restless, questing, hopeful people. We must bring to our task today the vision and will of those who came before us.
From our revolution, the Civil War, to the Great Depression to the civil rights movement, our people have always mustered the determination to construct from these crises the pillars of our history.
Thomas Jefferson believed that to preserve the very foundations of our nation, we would need dramatic change from time to time. Well, my fellow citizens, this is our time. Let us embrace it.
Our democracy must be not only the envy of the world but the engine of our own renewal. There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America.
And so today, we pledge an end to the era of deadlock and drift; a new season of American renewal has begun. To renew America, we must be bold. We must do what no generation has had to do before. We must invest more in our own people, in their jobs, in their future, and at the same time cut our massive debt. And we must do so in a world in which we must compete for every opportunity. It will not be easy; it will require sacrifice. But it can be done, and done fairly, not choosing sacrifice for its own sake, but for our own sake. We must provide for our nation the way a family provides for its children.
Our Founders saw themselves in the light of posterity. We can do no less. Anyone who has ever watched a child&39;s eyes wander into sleep knows what posterity is. Posterity is the world to come; the world for whom we hold our ideals, from whom we have borrowed our planet, and to whom we bear sacred responsibility. We must do what America does best: offer more opportunity to all and demand responsibility from all.
It is time to break the bad habit of expecting something for nothing, from our government or from each other. Let us all take more responsibility, not only for ourselves and our families but for our communities and our country. To renew America, we must revitalize our democracy.
This beautiful capital, like every capital since the dawn of civilization, is often a place of intrigue and calculation. Powerful people maneuver for position and worry endlessly about who is in and who is out, who is up and who is down, forgetting those people whose toil and sweat sends us here and pays our way.
Americans deserve better, and in this city today, there are people who want to do better. And so I say to all of us here, let us resolve to reform our politics, so that power and privilege no longer shout down the voice of the people. Let us put aside personal advantage so that we can feel the pain and see the promise of America. Let us resolve to make our government a place for what Franklin Roosevelt called "bold, persistent experimentation," a government for our tomorrows, not our yesterdays. Let us give this capital back to the people to whom it belongs.
To renew America, we must meet challenges abroad as well at home. There is no longer division between what is foreign and what is domestic; the world economy, the world environment, the world AIDS crisis, the world arms race; they affect us all.
Today, as an old order passes, the new world is more free but less stable. Communism&39;s collapse has called forth old animosities and new dangers. Clearly America must continue to lead the world we did so much to make.
While America rebuilds at home, we will not shrink from the challenges, nor fail to seize the opportunities, of this new world. Together with our friends and allies, we will work to shape change, lest it engulf us.
When our vital interests are challenged, or the will and conscience of the international community is defied, we will act; with peaceful diplomacy when ever possible, with force when necessary. The brave Americans serving our nation today in the Persian Gulf, in Somalia, and wherever else they stand are testament to our resolve.
But our greatest strength is the power of our ideas, which are still new in many lands. Across the world, we see them embraced, and we rejoice. Our hopes, our hearts, our hands, are with those on every continent who are building democracy and freedom. Their cause is America&39;s cause.
The American people have summoned the change we celebrate today. You have raised your voices in an unmistakable chorus. You have cast your votes in historic numbers. And you have changed the face of Congress, the presidency and the political process itself. Yes, you, my fellow Americans have forced the spring. Now, we must do the work the season demands.
To that work I now turn, with all the authority of my office. I ask the Congress to join with me. But no president, no Congress, no government, can undertake this mission alone. My fellow Americans, you, too, must play your part in our renewal. I challenge a new generation of young Americans to a season of service; to act on your idealism by helping troubled children, keeping company with those in need, reconnecting our torn communities. There is so much to be done; enough indeed for millions of others who are still young in spirit to give of themselves in service, too.
In serving, we recognize a simple but powerful truth, we need each other. And we must care for one another. Today, we do more than celebrate America; we rededicate ourselves to the very idea of America.
An idea born in revolution and renewed through two centuries of challenge. An idea tempered by the knowledge that, but for fate we, the fortunate and the unfortunate, might have been each other. An idea ennobled by the faith that our nation can summon from its myriad diversity the deepest measure of unity. An idea infused with the conviction that America&39;s long heroic journey must go forever upward.
And so, my fellow Americans, at the edge of the 21st century, let us begin with energy and hope, with faith and discipline, and let us work until our work is done. The scripture says, "And let us not be weary in well-doing, for in due season, we shall reap, if we faint not."
From this joyful mountaintop of celebration, we hear a call to service in the valley. We have heard the trumpets. We have changed the guard. And now, each in our way, and with God&39;s help, we must answer the call.
Thank you, and God bless you all.
译文
同胞们:
今天，我们庆祝振兴美国这件令人感到异常惊奇的事。
尽管这个仪式在隆冬举行，但是，我们所说的话，我们向全世界所显示的面貌，将促使春天的早日来临。春天重新降临到这个世界上最古老的民主国家，它给我们带来了重新塑造美国的构想和勇气。
当我们的缔造者们大胆地向全世界宣布美国的独立，向上帝宣布我们的目的时，他们知道，美国要长久地存在下去，就必须改革。我们不是为改革而改革，而是为了保持美国的理想——生活、自由和追求幸福。虽然我们伴随着时代的乐曲前进，我们的使命却是永恒的。每一代美国人都必须明确作为一个美国人意味着什么。
我的前任布什总统为美国服务了半个世纪，在此，我代表我们的国家向他致以崇高的敬意。
我还要向千百万人民表示感谢，他们以坚定的信念和牺牲战胜了经济萧条、法西斯主义。今天，在冷战的阴影下成长起来的一代人在世界上已肩负起新的责任。这个世界虽然沐浴在自由的阳光下，但仍然面临着旧的仇恨和新的灾祸的威胁。
我们在无与伦比的繁荣中成长，继承了一个仍然是世界上最强大经济，但是，商业失败、工资停滞、不平等加剧，以及我们自己的人民四分五裂，削弱了这个经济。
当乔治华盛顿第一次发出我刚才宣誓信守的誓言时，消息缓慢地通过骑马传遍大陆和乘船漂洋过海。而今，这个仪式的情景和声音可以立即向全世界数十亿人广播。
通讯和商业是全球性的，投资是流动性的，技术几乎是神秘的，而要求改善生活的强烈愿望是全世界人民共同的。今天，我们美国人是和全世界人民在和平竞争中谋求我们的生计。
各种根深蒂固和强大的势力正在动摇和重新塑造我们的世界。我们时代迫切需要解决的问题是，我们能否使改革成为我们的朋友，而不是我们的敌人。
尽管这个新的世界已经使千百万能够在其中竞争并取胜的美国人富裕起来了，但是，在大多数人更加拼命地工作而收入却在减少的时候，在还有人根本找不到工作的时候，在卫生保健费用使许多人倾家荡产、使大大小小的企业行将倒闭的时候，在恐惧犯罪而使奉公守法的公民丧失自由的时候，在千百万贫困儿童甚至难以想象我们正召唤他们去过的那种生活的时候，我们却还没有使改革成为我们的朋友。
我们知道，我们必须正视严酷的现实并且采取有力的措施，但是，我们没有这样做。相反，我们所奉行的是放任自流的政策，这种政策已经削弱了我们的力量，破坏了我们的经济，动摇了我们的信心。
虽然我们的挑战是可畏的，但我们的力量也是可畏的。美国人民从来就是一个不甘寂寞、勇于探索和充满希望的人民。我们必须使我们今天的任务体现我们前人的远见和意志。
从美国革命到南北战争，到大萧条，到民权运动，我们的人民总是下定决心，从这些危机中摆脱出来去建立我们历史的支柱。
托马斯杰斐逊认为，要保持我们国家的基础，我们就需要不时地进行改革。同胞们，这是我们的时代，让我们去拥抱它。
我们的民主制度不仅要为全世界所仰慕，还必须成为我们自我振兴的发动机。美国完全有能力自己解救自己。
因此，今天我们决心结束这个僵持停顿和放任自流的时代。一个振兴美国的新时代已经到来。要振兴美国，我们必须有足够的勇气和胆量。我们必须对自己的人民——对他们的工作和对他们的未来——增加投资，同时削减我们的巨额债务。在一个我们必须靠竞争才能获得每个机会的世界上，我们一定要这样做。虽然，这不是一件轻而易举的事，它需要作出牺牲。但是，我们能够做到，而且能够做得很好。我们不是为了牺牲而牺牲，而是为我们自己的利益而牺牲。我们必须像一个家庭抚育它的孩子那样抚育我们的国家。
我们的缔造者们是从子孙后代的角度来审视他们自己的行为。我们也必须这样做。任何曾经注意过孩子的双眼朦胧进入梦乡的人，都知道后代是什么。后代是未来的世界。为了他们，我们满怀理想。从他们那里，我们借用了这块地球，对他们，我们负有神圣的责任。我们必须尽美国之所能：向所有人提供更多的机会，要求所有人承担更多的责任。
现在，已经到了该破除那种只望政府或别人给予，而自己不愿付出的坏习惯的时候了。让我们大家都担负起更多的责任，不光是为我们自己和我们的家庭，而且是我们的社会和我们的国家。为振兴美国，我们必须给我们的民主制度带来新的活力。
这个美丽的首都，就像文明出现以来的所有首都一样，往往是一个搞阴谋诡计和勾心斗角的地方。达官贵族们玩弄权术、争名夺利，随时都在担心谁进谁出、谁升谁降，忘记了那些用辛勤和汗水把我们送到这里，并为我们承担费用的人。
美国人应当生活得更好。今天，在这座城市里，人们希望把事情办得更好。所以，我要向在场的诸位说，让我们下定决心改革我们的政治，使人民的呼声不再被权力和特权所压倒。让我们抛开个人利益，这样，我们便能感受到美国的痛苦，也看到美国的希望。让我们下定决心，使我们的政府成为一个富兰克林罗斯福所说的，进行“大胆而持久的实验”的地方，即是说，成为一个着眼于未来，而不是留恋过去的政府。让我们把这个首都还给她所属的人民。
为了振兴美国，我们必须迎接来自国内、国外的种种挑战。在什么是国外和什么是国内之间已不再有明确的界线。全球经济、全球环境、全球艾滋病危机和全球军备竞赛，这一切影响着所有的人。
今天，随着旧秩序被打破，新的世界更加自由，但又更加不稳定。共产主义的崩溃激起了旧的仇恨和新的危险。显然，美国必须继续领导这个我们曾经付出巨大努力而创造的世界。
当我们致力于重建美国的时候，我们不会在这个新世界的挑战面前退缩，也不会坐失良机。我们将同我们的朋友和盟国一道，努力确定改革和发展方向，以免被改革所吞没。
当我们的国家利益受到挑战，或者国际社会的意志及公德遭到蔑视的时候，我们将尽可能地通过和平外交手段去解决。必要时也可以诉诸武力。今天，在波斯湾，在索马里，在其他地方，那些为国效力的美国勇士们都证明了我们的决心。
然而，我们最大的实力是我们的思想力量。在许多国家，美国的思想还是一种新生力量。看到这些思想为世界各国所接受，我们感到由衷的高兴。我们的希望、我们的心，我们的手，同五大洲正在建设民主和自由的人民是联在一起的。他们的事业就是美国的事业。
美国人民呼唤我们今天庆祝的变革。你们异口同声地提高了自己的呼声。你们以前所未有的人数参加了投票。你们改变了国会、总统以及政治进程本身的面貌。同胞们，是的，你们已经促使春天提前到来了。现在，我们必须致力于这个时期所赋予我们的任务。
为了这个任务，我将充分行使我的职权。我请求国会同我合作。但是，任何一位总统，任何一个国会，任何一届政府，都无法独自承担这一使命。同胞们，你们也必须在国家的振兴中发挥作用。我要求新一代美国青年按照你们的理想行动起来，帮助困难儿童，同患难者休戚与共，把我们这个四分五裂的社会重新凝为一体，为祖国贡献你们的力量。要做的事情太多——确实足以使千百万精神上依然年轻的其他人也投身其中。
在振兴祖国的事业中，我们认识到一个简单而强有力的真理。我们不仅彼此需要，还必须相互关心。今天，我们不只是在庆祝美国，而且是在重新献身于美国的思想。
这种思想是一种在革命中诞生、经过两个世纪的挑战而获得新生的思想。一种经受过这种认识锤炼的思想，即我们这些幸运者和不幸者，若非因为命运的安排，可能已经变换位置。一种因为这种信念而变得崇高的思想，即相信我们的国家能够从无数的分歧中求得最大程度的团结一致。一种充满信心的思想，即相信美国漫长而英勇的旅程定会永远向上。
为此，同胞们，在即将跨入21世纪的时候，让我们重新开始，鼓起勇气、满怀希望、坚定信念、遵守纪律，把我们的事业进行到底。《圣经》说：“我们行善，不可丧志，只要坚持，终有收获。”
在这个欢庆的高山之巅，我们听到山谷里传来为国效力的召唤。我们听到了号声。我们已经换岗。现在，我们每个人都必须以自己的方式在上帝的帮助下响应这一号召。
谢谢你们。愿上帝保佑大家。
The Second Inaugural Address by Bill Clinton
January 20, 1997
My fellow citizens :
At this last presidential inauguration of the 20th century, let us lift our eyes toward the challenges that await us in the next century. It is our great good fortune that time and chance have put us not only at the edge of a new century, in a new millennium, but on the edge of a bright new prospect in human affairs, a moment that will define our course, and our character, for decades to come. We must keep our old democracy forever young. Guided by the ancient vision of a promised land, let us set our sights upon a land of new promise.
The promise of America was born in the 18th century out of the bold conviction that we are all created equal. It was extended and preserved in the 19th century, when our nation spread across the continent, saved the union, and abolished the awful scourge of slavery.
Then, in turmoil and triumph, that promise exploded onto the world stage to make this the American Century.
And what a century it has been. America became the world&39;s mightiest industrial power; saved the world from tyranny in two world wars and a long cold war; and time and again, reached out across the globe to millions who, like us, longed for the blessings of liberty.
Along the way, Americans produced a great middle class and security in old age; built unrivaled centers of learning and opened public schools to all; split the atom and explored the heavens; invented the computer and the microchip; and deepened the wellspring of justice by making a revolution in civil rights for African Americans and all minorities, and extending the circle of citizenship, opportunity and dignity to women.
Now, for the third time, a new century is upon us, and another time to choose. We began the 19th century with a choice, to spread our nation from coast to coast. We began the 20th century with a choice, to harness the Industrial Revolution to our values of free enterprise, conservation, and human decency. Those choices made all the difference.
At the dawn of the 21st century a free people must now choose to shape the forces of the Information Age and the global society, to unleash the limitless potential of all our people, and, yes, to form a more perfect union.
When last we gathered, our march to this new future seemed less certain than it does today. We vowed then to set a clear course to renew our nation.
In these four years, we have been touched by tragedy, exhilarated by challenge, strengthened by achievement. America stands alone as the world&39;s indispensable nation. Once again, our economy is the strongest on Earth. Once again, we are building stronger families, thriving communities, better educational opportunities, a cleaner environment. Problems that once seemed destined to deepen now bend to our efforts: our streets are safer and record numbers of our fellow citizens have moved from welfare to work.
And once again, we have resolved for our time a great debate over the role of government. Today we can declare: Government is not the problem, and government is not the solution. We,- the American people, we are the solution. Our founders understood that well and gave us a democracy strong enough to endure for centuries, flexible enough to face our common challenges and advance our common dreams in each new day.
As times change, so government must change. We need a new government for a new century - humble enough not to try to solve all our problems for us, but strong enough to give us the tools to solve our problems for ourselves; a government that is smaller, lives within its means, and does more with less. Yet where it can stand up for our values and interests in the world, and where it can give Americans the power to make a real difference in their everyday lives, government should do more, not less. The preeminent mission of our new government is to give all Americans an opportunity,- not a guarantee, but a real opportunity to build better lives.
Beyond that, my fellow citizens, the future is up to us. Our founders taught us that the preservation of our liberty and our union depends upon responsible citizenship. And we need a new sense of responsibility for a new century. There is work to do, work that government alone cannot do: teaching children to read; hiring people off welfare rolls; coming out from behind locked doors and shuttered windows to help reclaim our streets from drugs and gangs and crime; taking time out of our own lives to serve others.
Each and every one of us, in our own way, must assume personal responsibility, not only for ourselves and our families, but for our neighbors and our nation. Our greatest responsibility is to embrace a new spirit of community for a new century. For any one of us to succeed, we must succeed as one America.
The challenge of our past remains the challenge of our future, will we be one nation, one people, with one common destiny, or not? Will we all come together, or come apart?
The divide of race has been America&39;s constant curse. And each new wave of immigrants gives new targets to old prejudices. Prejudice and contempt, cloaked in the pretense of religious or political conviction are no different. These forces have nearly destroyed our nation in the past. They plague us still. They fuel the fanaticism of terror. And they torment the lives of millions in fractured nations all around the world.
These obsessions cripple both those who hate and, of course, those who are hated, robbing both of what they might become. We cannot, we will not, succumb to the dark impulses that lurk in the far regions of the soul everywhere. We shall overcome them. And we shall replace them with the generous spirit of a people who feel at home with one another.
Our rich texture of racial, religious and political diversity will be a Godsend in the 21st century. Great rewards will come to those who can live together, learn together, work together, forge new ties that bind together.
As this new era approaches we can already see its broad outlines. Ten years ago, the Internet was the mystical province of physicists; today, it is a commonplace encyclopedia for millions of schoolchildren. Scientists now are decoding the blueprint of human life. Cures for our most feared illnesses seem close at hand.
The world is no longer divided into two hostile camps. Instead, now we are building bonds with nations that once were our adversaries. Growing connections of commerce and culture give us a chance to lift the fortunes and spirits of people the world over. And for the very first time in all of history, more people on this planet live under democracy than dictatorship.
My fellow Americans, as we look back at this remarkable century, we may ask, can we hope not just to follow, but even to surpass the achievements of the 20th century in America and to avoid the awful bloodshed that stained its legacy? To that question, every American here and every American in our land today must answer a resounding "Yes."
This is the heart of our task. With a new vision of government, a new sense of responsibility, a new spirit of community, we will sustain America&39;s journey. The promise we sought in a new land we will find again in a land of new promise.
In this new land, education will be every citizen&39;s most prized possession. Our schools will have the highest standards in the world, igniting the spark of possibility in the eyes of every girl and every boy. And the doors of higher education will be open to all. The knowledge and power of the Information Age will be within reach not just of the few, but of every classroom, every library, every child. Parents and children will have time not only to work, but to read and play together. And the plans they make at their kitchen table will be those of a better home, a better job, the certain chance to go to college.
Our streets will echo again with the laughter of our children, because no one will try to shoot them or sell them drugs anymore. Everyone who can work, will work, with today&39;s permanent under class part of tomorrow&39;s growing middle class. New miracles of medicine at last will reach not only those who can claim care now, but the children and hardworking families too long denied.
We will stand mighty for peace and freedom, and maintain a strong defense against terror and destruction. Our children will sleep free from the threat of nuclear, chemical or biological weapons. Ports and airports, farms and factories will thrive with trade and innovation and ideas. And the world&39;s greatest democracy will lead a whole world of democracies.
Our land of new promise will be a nation that meets its obligations, a nation that balances its budget, but never loses the balance of its values. A nation where our grandparents have secure retirement and health care, and their grandchildren know we have made the reforms necessary to sustain those benefits for their time. A nation that fortifies the world&39;s most productive economy even as it protects the great natural bounty of our water, air, and majestic land.
And in this land of new promise, we will have reformed our politics so that the voice of the people will always speak louder than the din of narrow interests, regaining the participation and deserving the trust of all Americans.
Fellow citizens, let us build that America, a nation ever moving forward toward realizing the full potential of all its citizens. Prosperity and power, yes, they are important, and we must maintain them. But let us never forget: The greatest progress we have made, and the greatest progress we have yet to make, is in the human heart. In the end, all the world&39;s wealth and a thousand armies are no match for the strength and decency of the human spirit.
Thirty-four years ago, the man whose life we celebrate today spoke to us down there, at the other end of this Mall, in words that moved the conscience of a nation. Like a prophet of old, he told of his dream that one day America would rise up and treat all its citizens as equals before the law and in the heart. Martin Luther King&39;s dream was the American Dream. His quest is our quest: the ceaseless striving to live out our true creed. Our history has been built on such dreams and labors. And by our dreams and labors we will redeem the promise of America in the 21st century.
To that effort I pledge all my strength and every power of my office. I ask the members of Congress here to join in that pledge. The American people returned to office a President of one party and a Congress of another. Surely, they did not do this to advance the politics of petty bickering and extreme partisanship they plainly deplore. No, they call on us instead to be repairers of the breach, and to move on with America&39;s mission.
America demands and deserves big things from us,- and nothing big ever came from being small. Let us remember the timeless wisdom of Cardinal Bernardin, when facing the end of his own life. He said, "It is wrong to waste the precious gift of time, on acrimony and division."
Fellow citizens, we must not waste the precious gift of this time. For all of us are on that same journey of our lives, and our journey, too, will come to an end. But the journey of our America must go on.
And so, my fellow Americans, we must be strong, for there is much to dare. The demands of our time are great and they are different. Let us meet them with faith and courage, with patience and a grateful and happy heart. Let us shape the hope of this day into the noblest chapter in our history. Yes, let us build our bridge. A bridge wide enough and strong enough for every American to cross over to a blessed land of new promise.
May those generations whose faces we cannot yet see, whose names we may never know, say of us here that we led our beloved land into a new century with the American Dream alive for all her children; with the American promise of a more perfect union a reality for all her people; with America&39;s bright flame of freedom spreading throughout all the world.
From the height of this place and the summit of this century, let us go forth. May God strengthen our hands for the good work ahead, and always, always bless our America.
【中文译文】：
同胞们：
藉此二十世纪最后一届总统就职演说之际,让我们睁开眼睛迎接下一世纪我们将面临的挑战.所幸的是,时间和机遇不仅将我们置身于一个新世纪的边缘,一个新的千周年,而且将我们置身于人类事业一个崭新新的、光辉的边缘——一个决定我们未来数十年方向和地位的时刻.我们必须使我们古老的民主永葆青春.在“希望之乡”这一古老憧憬的指引下,让我们着眼于新的“希望之乡”.
美国的希望源于十八世纪一种无畏的信念：人生来皆平等.在十九世纪,我们的国家横跨大陆,拯救了联邦,废除了恐怖的奴隶制的蹂躏.
这一信念得以流传和扩展.然后,在辛劳和胜利之中,这种希望奔上了世界的舞台,使本世纪成为美国的世纪.
这是怎样的一个世纪啊.美国成为世界上最强大的工业大国,它把世界从两次世界大战和旷日持久的冷战的暴虐中拯救出来,并且一再向全球上百万像我们一样渴望自由赐福的人们伸出援助之手.
在这一进程中,美国产生 了庞大的中产阶级和老年人保险制度,建立了无与伦比的学习中心,并对全民开放公立学校,分裂了原子且探索了太空,发明了计算机和微芯片,通过发起一场非裔美国人和少数民族的民权革命,及扩大妇女的公民权利,就业机会和人身尊严,而深掘了正义之泉.
现在,也是第三次,一个新世纪来到我们面前,这又是一个选择的时候,我们进入十九世纪时有一个选择,使得我们国家从一个海岸扩展到另一个海岸,我们进入二十世纪时又有一个选择,使得工业革命能符合我们的价值观,即自由经营,水土保持,和恪守人类正义,这些选择使得一切迥然不同.
在二十一世纪曙光来临之际,一个自由的民族必须做出选择,去打造信息时代和全球一体化的力量.去释放全民无尽的潜能,并且,去成就一个更完美的联邦国家.
上次我们在此相聚时,我们向这个新未来的进军似乎没有今天这么明确,我们那时曾宣誓 确立新的道路,复兴我们的国家.
在这四年中,我们感到悲剧带来的触动,挑战带来的兴奋,成就带来的增强,美国作为世界不可缺少的国家巍然挺立,再一次,我们的经济是世界上最强大的经济,再一次,我们建设着更牢固的家庭,繁荣的社区,更好的教育机会,更清洁的环境,曾经似乎注定要恶化的问题现在也屈服于我们 的努力,我们的街道更安全,我们的同胞有创记录的人数已从福利走向工作.
再一次,我们解决了当前关于政府角色问题的巨大争论.今天我们可以宣告：政府不是问题的产生者,政府也不是问题的解决者,我们-美国人民-我们才是问题的解决者,我们的缔造者深深地了解这一点,他们给予我们的民主强壮的足以持续几个世纪.柔韧地足以在每一新的日子里迎接我们共同的挑战并推进我们共同的梦想.
同胞们,让我们建设这样的美国,一个永远前进,以充分发挥全民潜力的国家.是的,我们必须保持繁荣强大.但是,我们不能忘记：我们已取得的伟大成就,我们将取得的伟大的成就,就在人民心中.到最后,整个世界的财富和千支军队都无法与人类精神力量和精神文明相匹敌.
三十四年前,有一个人,他的一生为我们今天所歌颂,他就在那边,在广场的另一端对我们演讲,他的话打动了国民的良知.像是一个古时的预言家,他诉说着他的梦想：有一天美国终会站起来,在法律面前和人们心中所有公民都将得到平等对待.马丁·路德·金的梦是美国之梦.他的要求就是我们的要求,即不断努力实现我们生活信条.我们的历史就建立在这样的梦想和努力上.通过我们的梦想和努力,我们重赎二十一世纪美国的希望.
同胞们,我们不能浪费当前宝贵的时机.因为我们大家都在生命的同一旅途上,我们的旅途会有终点.但我们的美国之路必须走下去.
我们还看不到我们的后代的面孔,也永远不会知道他们的名字,但是当他们谈论到我们的时候,希望他们会说我们把祖国领进了新的世纪,把有活力的美国梦留给了所有的子孙
让我们从此地之峰,从世纪之巅前进.愿上帝给我们强有力的双手,做好未来的工作——并且,永远,永远保佑我们美国.