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唐大旻
众所周知，美国总统特朗普一直活跃于社交媒体平台推特，以至有人戏称他“推特治国”。不过，他似乎并不满足于此。据报道，特朗普2020年连任竞选团队计划在近期推出专属app，以进一步拉拢选民。这会是一款什么样的app？这一选举奇招能否奏效？一起来听今天的讲解。
本篇课程首发于2019年10月2日
文本难度：
话题难度：
“Trump 2020” to launch app to make America even greater
① US President Donald Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign is launching its own app this fall to coax “the army of Trump” to donate, volunteer and rope in fellow comrades.
② The social networking app will help track Trump followers more extensively, indulging targeted users with customized messages and offering top donors VIP seats at a rally or a photo with the man himself.
③ It also provides the president with an unfiltered access to his supporters, allowing him to sidestep social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, which Trump often accuses of “terrible bias” against conservatives.
④ Candidates releasing election apps to strengthen their voter base is nothing new. Both Trump and his opponents had developed apps in 2016, though the hasty launches with bare-bones features provoked tepid responses.
⑤ Moreover, given the president’s heavy use of Twitter as his megaphone, digital experts believe that it could be tricky to persuade users to download a new app, a hurdle that has failed many.
⑥ The Republican strategists, however, claim the Trump campaign has a shot at making it work as Trump supporters are more loyal. A feature that aids Trump fans in speaking to the like-minded in private could be a bonus as it enables frank political talks, even radical, without repercussions.
1.launch /lɔːntʃ/ vt. 推出；发布；发射 launch a rocket 发射火箭
launch a product 推出产品
launch a military assault 发起军事攻击
2.reelection campaign 连任竞选活动
3.coax /kəʊks/ vt. 胁迫，强迫（相当于coerce） coax or coerce sb. to do sth. 强迫某人做某事
coax or coerce sb. into doing sth. 强迫某人做某事
Sometimes I wish I could coerce my cat to sleep by my side. Do you know how to coax a cat into sharing a bed with a human?
我真想强迫我的猫睡在我边上啊，你知道怎么才能诱导猫咪和人同床睡吗？
4.rope sb. in 招揽某人，吸引某人
5.fellow comrade 同志（比喻特朗普的粉丝） fellow加在名词前表达和自己一样的人
my fellow teachers at YLYK
我在友邻优课的老师同事们
6.social networking app 社交应用
7.track /træk/ vt. 追踪，记录（相当于keep track of） I have been keeping track of my living expenses this month, and the numbers concern me a lot.
这个月我一直在记录自己的生活开销，那些数字让我担忧。
8.indulge /ɪn'dʌldʒ/ vt. 宠溺，纵容 indulge sb. with sth. 给某人提供某物，以某物纵容某人
9.sidestep /'saɪdstep/ vt. 规避（step on its side）
10.accuse sb. of sth. 指责某人做了某事
11.conservative /kən'sɜːvətɪv/ n. 保守人士 adj. 保守的 representative /reprɪ'zentətɪv/ n. 代表 adj. 有代表性的
12.voter base 票基
13.bare-bones /beə'bəunz/ adj. 简陋的
14.feature /'fiːtʃə/ n. 功能，特色
15.tepid /'tepɪd/ adj. 平淡的，温和的（相当于lukewarm）
16.megaphone /'megəfəʊn/ n. 扩音器，传声筒
17.hurdle /hɜːd(ə)l/ n. 障碍
18.have a shot at doing sth. 试着做某事 give it a shot 试试某事（相当于give it a try）
I’m not sure I have a shot at winning the competition, but I’ll give it a shot anyway.
我不确定能不能赢这个比赛，但我会尽力一试。
It is a long shot. 这事很难。
long shot 表示难度很大的挑战
19.like-minded /'laik'maindid/ adj. 想法差不多的，英雄所见略同的 the like-minded 所见略同的人
20.repercussion /riːpə'kʌʃ(ə)n/ n. 反弹，反响
