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2017考研英语拓展阅读：奥巴马为214名犯人减刑

　　Most of those affected were guilty of non-violent crimes, many involving possession or distribution of drugs.

　　被赦免犯人大多数都是非暴力犯罪，许多人都是因持有和贩卖毒品而入狱。

　　The president has now made 562 commutations, officials say.

　　有官员表示说，奥巴马目前为止已经对562做出了减刑赦免。

　　He has authorised more than the previous nine presidents combined.

　　奥巴马赦免的人比前九任总统赦免的人加起来还要多。

　　Almost all the prisoners were convicted for crimes related to cocaine, methamphetamine or other drugs.

　　几乎所有犯人被判有罪的原因都是犯下了和可卡因、冰毒以及其他毒品有关的罪行。

　　A few are in jail for firearms violations related to their drug activities. Almost all those affected are men, representing a diverse geographical cross-section of the US.

　　一部分被判入狱是因为犯下了和毒品活动相关的枪支违法行为。被赦免的犯人几乎全部是男性，他们来自美国不同的地方。

　　"All of the individuals receiving commutation [on Wednesday] were incarcerated under outdated and unduly harsh sentencing laws," White House counsel Neil Eggleston wrote in a blog post.

　　白宫律师尼尔·埃格尔斯顿在其一篇博文中写道：“所有这些在周三被减刑的犯人们都曾因过时和量刑过于严重的法律而被囚禁。”

　　"They embody the president’s belief that America is a nation of second chances."

　　“他们体现了奥巴马总统的信念--美国是一个有第二次机会的国家。”

　　Correspondents say that Mr Obama’s drive to reduce the sentences of non-violent drug offenders as part of his clemency initiative reflects his long-held belief that the US needs to introduce less severe sentencing requirements.

　　有记者指出，奥巴马对这些非暴力毒品犯罪者减刑的行为是其特赦计划的一部分，反映出了他长久以来所秉持的信念--美国需要引进不那么严苛的量刑要求。

　　The president is believed to have used the fast pace of his commutations to put pressure on Congress to address the sentencing issue.

　　外界认为，奥巴马用频繁的减刑行动来向国会施压，从而使得他们解决量刑的问题。

　　One of the inmates benefitting from the president’s leniency is reported by the AP news agency to be Dicky Joe Jackson of Texas.

　　据美联社报道，在受益于此次总统赦免的犯人中，有一名犯人是来自于德州的迪克·乔·杰克逊。

　　He was sentenced to life in 1996 for methamphetamine violations and for being a felon with an unlicensed gun.

　　在1996年，他因冰毒犯罪和无证持枪被判终身监禁。

　　Jackson was reported to have said in 2013 that he would have preferred a death sentence: "I wish it were over, even if it meant I were dead,’’ he was quoted as saying at the time.

　　有媒体曾经引述杰克逊的话报道，他曾在2013年表示说自己宁愿被判死刑：“我希望这一切在那时就能够结束，甚至这意味着我可能已经死了。”

　　The sentences of most of those affected by the president’s order will now end on 1 December, officials say.

　　有官员表示，大多数奥巴马此次赦免犯人的刑期将在12月1日结束。

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