奥巴马就职前夜会麦凯恩 赞其为"美国英雄" 奥巴马, 麦凯恩

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Barack Obama honours rival John McCain on eve of inauguration
奥巴马临就职前夜会麦凯恩 赞其为"美国英雄"

Barack Obama honoured his vanquished Republican rival John McCain, describing the Arizona senator as an "American hero" while the Democrat prepared for the position both men fought bitterly to attain


据英国路透社报道，美国候任总统奥巴马在上任前一天盛赞共和党对手麦凯恩，称这位亚利桑那州参议员为“美国英雄”。

　　奥巴马和麦凯恩总统竞选时在外交和国内事务等多方面有冲突，有时还会转化为对彼此的人身攻击。

　　不过，奥巴马很明确地表示那个阶段已经过去了，尽管他预测两人以后应该会存在很多分歧。“约翰是有话直说的人，所以如果我搞砸了，他肯定会告诉我的。而且这也是应该的，”奥巴马并表示，总统只不过是美国政府的一个分支。

　　奥巴马将在周二宣誓就任美国第44届总统。

　　在就任的前一天晚上，他与麦凯恩、科林·鲍威尔以及拜登共进了晚餐。在晚餐讲话的一开始，奥巴马就将麦凯恩称为“美国英雄”，称赞他比大多数人都了解在政治中什么才是真正重要的。奥巴马还呼吁，华盛顿应该有新的合作精神。

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Obama and McCain clashed repeatedly on the campaign trail over foreign and domestic policy in sometimes heated exchanges that occasionally veered into the personal

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But at a bipartisan dinner in Washington DC, Obama made clear that period had passed even as he predicted the two would not always get along in the future

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"John is not known to bite his tongue and if I'm screwing up, he's going to let me know. And that's how it should be," Obama said, adding that the presidency was just one branch of the US government

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With a nod to their high-profile television debates before the election, Obama joked that McCain would have a chance to contradict the things being said about him

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"I'm here tonight to say a few words about an American hero who I have come to know very well and admire very much: Senator John McCain," Obama began. "And then, according to the rules agreed to by both parties, John will have approximately thirty seconds to make a rebuttal"

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The two men embraced when Obama called McCain to the front of the glittering ballroom and exited the stage together, with Obama placing his hand on McCain's back

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Later, McCain said he was grateful "to play a small role in the inauguration of the 44th president of the United States, even if it isn't the one I had in mind a few months ago"

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"I give my pledge to my former opponent, my new president, I will do the best I can to help you in the hard work ahead," he said