紐時賞析／川拜再戰美國大選 民眾不悅卻別無選擇

A Trump-Biden Rematch Is the Election We Need

我們需要川拜再戰大選

Joe Biden versus Donald Trump is not the choice America wants. But it is the choice we need to face.

拜登對決川普不是美國想要的選項，卻是我們需要面對的選項。

Yes, both men are unpopular, remarkably so. Only one-third of Americans view President Joe Biden favorably, and two-thirds of Democrats and Democratic-leaning voters want to nominate someone else for the presidency (no one in particular, just someone else, please). Trump is the overwhelming favorite to become the Republican nominee for the third consecutive time, but his overall approval rating is lower than Biden’s. And while 60% of voters don’t want to put Trump back in the White House, 65% don’t want to hand Biden a second term, either. The one thing on which Americans seem to agree is that we find a Biden-Trump 2024 rematch entirely disagreeable.

是的，兩個人都不受歡迎，這很明顯。只有三分之一美國人對拜登總統抱持好感，三分之二民主黨人及親民主黨選民想提名其他人選總統（沒特別誰，其他人就好，拜託）。川普有壓倒性優勢，可望連續第3次成為共和黨總統候選人，其總體支持率卻比拜登更低。雖然百分之六十選民不願川普重回白宮，也有百分之六十五選民不想要拜登繼續連任。有一件事情美國人似乎頗有共識，那就是拜登川普2024年再度交鋒讓人感到極度不悅。

This disdain may reflect the standard gripes about the candidates. (One is too old, the other too Trump.) But it also may signal an underlying reluctance to acknowledge the meaning of their standoff and the inescapability of our decision. A contest between Biden and Trump would compel Americans to either reaffirm or discard basic democratic and governing principles. More so than any other pairing, Biden versus Trump forces us to decide, or at least to clarify, who we think we are and what we strive to be.

這厭惡感反映的或許是對這兩名候選人的典型牢騷（一個太老，另一個太川普）。但這也可能顯示，人們不願承認他們對峙的意義，以及我們無可避免的決定。拜登和川普的競爭將迫使美國人強化或放棄基本民主及治理原則。比起其他組合，拜登對決川普強迫我們決定，或至少釐清，我們自認為是誰，以及我們努力想成為什麼樣的人。

Oddly, even as the electorate seems to want little to do with either of these two candidates — let alone with both at the same time — Biden and Trump seem to need each other. Biden’s case for saving American democracy loses some urgency if Trump is not in the race.

奇怪的是，雖然選民似乎並不想跟這兩個候選人中的任何一人扯上關係，更別提同時與兩個人扯上關係，但拜登與川普似乎需要對方。川普若沒參選，拜登拯救美國民主的主張就少了某種急迫性。

Like so many others, I also wish we could avoid that choice or at least defer it. As journalist Amy Walter has put it, “Swing voters would rather eat a bowl of glass than have to choose between Trump and Biden again.” Well, it may be time to grab a spoon and unroll the gauze. When half the country believes democracy isn’t working well, when calls for political violence have become commonplace, when the speaker of the House is an election denier, it is time to face what we risk becoming and to accept or reject it. We have no choice but to choose.

我跟許多人一樣，期望我們能避免這樣的選擇，或至少延後選擇。如同新聞工作者艾米．華爾特說的，「搖擺選民寧可吃下一碗玻璃，也不想在川普和拜登之間再選一次」。好吧，也許是時候拿起湯匙、鋪展繃帶了。當半個國家都認為民主運作不良，當政治暴力的呼聲變得司空見慣，當眾院議長是個否認選舉結果的人，是時候面對風險，正視我們可能成為的樣子，接受或著反對它。我們別無選擇，我們只能選擇。

文／Carlos Lozada 譯／陳曉慈

說文解字看新聞

【陳曉慈】

美國選民對「川拜再戰」十分感冒，但相關討論經常止於情緒層面的厭惡，作者則深一步剖析群眾鼓譟之根本，即難關重重卻也只能往前的美國未來。如何在兩個「爛蘋果」之間抉擇，正視現實的嚴峻與風險，將是美國選民釐清自我、為未來投下負責任一票的考驗。對其他國家而言，意義同樣重大。

Match主要指體育競賽，美語常用game，自然衍生出「對手」的意思。Find/meet your match不僅是棋逢對手，甚至是棋高一著的對手：He thought he could beat anyone at chess but he’s met his match in Peter.運動比賽遇上攻守同樣位置，體型卻差了一截的情況，英文稱mismatch，就是在NBA比賽轉播常聽到的「錯位」。

Gripe是抱怨，而且已達碎念程度，當動詞或名詞均可，接介係詞都是about。Throughout history, Americans have griped about taxes.此間也有「中華民國萬萬稅（歲）」的說法，足見人同此心。