紐時賞析／越界入美人數激增 拜登移民政策大轉彎、和四年前的川普更相近

Crisis on Border Dashes Biden Immigration Hopes

邊界人潮湧現 粉碎拜登移民政策願景

On President Joe Biden’s first day in office, he paused nearly all deportations. He vowed to end the harsh practices of the Trump administration, show compassion toward those wishing to come to the United States and secure the southern border.

美國總統拜登上任的第一天，他暫停了幾乎全部的驅逐出境。他宣誓要終止川普政府的嚴厲作法，對那些希望來到美國的人展現同情心，並讓美國南方邊界變得安全。

For Biden, it was a matter of principle. He wanted to show the world that the United States was a humane nation, while also demonstrating to his fellow citizens that government could work again.

對拜登來說，這是原則問題。他想要向世界展示，美國是一個人道國家，同時也向他的同胞證明，政府可以再次運作。

But those early promises have largely been set aside as chaos engulfs the border and imperils Biden’s reelection hopes. The number of people crossing into the United States has reached record levels, more than double than in the Trump years. The asylum system is still all but broken.

然而，隨著混亂吞噬邊界並危及拜登連任希望，那些早先的承諾大多已擱置。越界進入美國的人數創下新高，是川普執政年間的兩倍以上。庇護系統依然是幾乎殘破。

During his campaign for the White House in 2020, Biden pledged to limit raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, invest in the asylum system and close private immigration prisons.

在2020年爭奪白宮的選戰期間，拜登保證會限制移民和海關執法局的突襲搜查、投資於庇護系統並關閉私人移民監獄。

When children from Central America started crossing by the thousands in spring 2021, the president’s first instinct was compassion. Biden believed he was elected to deal with immigration in a humane manner.

2021年春天，當來自中美洲的兒童成千上萬開始越過邊界時，拜登總統的第一個反應是同情。拜登相信，他當選是為了以人道方式處理移民。

Some of the circumstances that have created the crisis are out of Biden’s control, such as the collapse of Venezuela, a surge in migration around the world and the obstinance of Republicans who have tried to thwart his efforts to address the problems.

造成這場危機的一些情況不受拜登控制，例如委內瑞拉崩潰，世界各地移民激增，以及共和黨人一意孤行試圖阻撓他解決這些問題的努力。

Biden went from a 2020 candidate who vowed to “end Trump’s assault on the dignity of immigrant communities” to a 2024 president who is “willing to make significant compromises on the border.”

拜登從宣誓要「終止川普攻擊移民社群尊嚴」的2020年候選人，變成「願意在邊界做出重大妥協」的2024年總統。

The people demanding border security were no longer just Republicans. They were members of Biden’s own party.

要求邊界安全的人不再只是共和黨員。他們是拜登自己政黨的成員。

The administration scrambled to meet the Democratic demands, providing more money and speeding up the processing of work permits.

政府忙著滿足民主黨的要求，提供更多經費與加速工作許可的辦理。

But the busing of migrants clearly shifted the discourse around the issue. And polling began to show growing support in the United States for border measures once denounced by Democrats and championed by Trump.

但移民巴士政策無疑轉移了圍繞這個問題的論述。民調開始顯示，曾經受到民主黨人譴責與川普擁護的邊界措施，在美國獲得愈來愈多支持。

As he campaigns for a second term in the White House, Biden has become unapologetic in his calls for more, and stricter, enforcement at the border. He now appears ready to run more as a leader determined to keep people out and less as a champion of displaced people.

在競選第二個白宮任期之際，拜登如今毫無愧意的呼籲更多且更加嚴格的邊境執法措施。他現在似乎準備以決心把人們拒於門外的領袖身分競選，而不是流離失所民眾的捍衛者。

文／Michael D. Shear, Hamed Aleaziz and Zolan Kanno-Youngs  譯／周辰陽

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【周辰陽】

沒有出現在本文但存在於西方先進國家的一個單字是xenophobia，中文譯為「仇外」，古人早有「非我族類，其心必異」的說法。德國前總理梅克爾就是栽在移／難民問題上，廣開善門卻落得自己狼狽下台。現在，標榜人道(humane)原則的美國總統拜登面臨類似的窘境，政策反而愈來愈像四年前他大力批判的川普。

Raid可當動詞或名詞，指士兵、艦艇或戰機突襲敵人，也可指查找罪犯、贓物或毒品的警察突訪，中文是「突擊檢查」，當名詞時前面動詞可用conduct或launch：The air force carried out a bombing raid on enemy bases.或He was injured during a police raid on his nightclub.

比obstinance更常見的字是obstinacy，意指固執、頑固，有時候可能是擇「惡」固執：She held to her own opinion with great obstinacy.形容疾病時則指「痼疾」：the obstinacy of tuberculosis.

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