时代周刊 民主党就政府关门认输 激起基层党人强烈反对(2)

In a way, the Jan.22 vote to reopen the government was the first policy melee¹ in the party’s 2020 presidential primary battle.

从某种程度上来说，1月22日针对是否让政府重新开张的选举可谓是就民主党2020年总统初选之战首次政策上的短兵相接。

But the Democrats²’ defeat should not have been a surprise.

然而，民主党会失利并没有什么好奇怪的。

Sure, the party’s left and right managed to row in the same direction for a while and agreed on a destination, but they never mapped their route.

没错，民主党内的左右两派曾暂时达成过一致，达成过一致的目标，但他们并没有明确自己的路线。

And they could have predicted that Republicans would not yield.

他们本可以料到共和党人不会善罢甘休的。

“Turning the agenda over to Democrats who just shut down the government makes no sense,”

“把议题交给刚刚关了政府的民主党人没有任何意义”

John Cornyn of Texas, the Senate’s second-ranking Republican, told reporters on Jan.21.

来自德克萨斯坐着参议院共和党第二把交椅的John Cornyn21号向记者透露。

“It seems like it encourages bad behavior.”

“那样会有种助纣为虐的感觉。”

While Democrats were unified³ heading into the shutdown, the second-guessing began quickly.

尽管民主党人一致主张政府关门，人们还是很快开始了第二轮猜测。

Some lawmakers heard from constituents⁴ back home—especially in states reliant on federal contractors⁵.

有议员就受到了来自家乡，尤其是那些指望着联邦承包商的选民的指责。

Others worried that the off-ramp for the shutdown hinged on Republicans’ caving. (Unlikely, if history were a guide.)

也有人担忧拖延政府关门要取决于共和党人是否妥协。（从历史经验来看是不可能的）

For some Democrats, shutting down the government and programs they wanted to protect and expand ran counter to their core beliefs.

对某些民主党人来说，让政府关门，取消他们想保护并推行的政策违背了他们的核心理念。

And so Democrats found themselves in a bind⁶: squeezed between Republican conviction and the demands of their own base.

所以，共和党人不愿让步，民主党又有自己的底线，民主党人便发现自己夹在中间进退两难。

In the end, they bought McConnell’s vague promises.

最后，尽管McConnell提出承诺时言辞含混，民主党还是选择了买他的账。

Some Democrats argued that the concessions⁷ allowed the party to look responsible, while paving the way for gains in the fall’s midterm elections.

部分民主党人士表示，他们正在筹备秋天的中期选举，让步会让民主党显得比较有责任心。

“For the first time, we’re going to see actual votes (on immigration),”

“我们将迎来针对移民的有史以来第一次实实在在的投票,”

Senator Angus King, an independent who caucuses⁸ with the Democrats, said before the Jan.22 vote.

参议院议员，身为无党派人士却还是会参加民主党会议的Angus King在22号投票前评论道。

Maybe. McConnell never specifically promised a stand-alone bill on the Deferred⁹ Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which protects Dreamers.

或许吧。毕竟，在保护追梦人利益的“童年入境暂缓遣返”项目上，McConnell从未明确承诺订立任何独立法案。

The next day, the third-ranking Republican in the House, Steve Scalise, declared McConnell’s work moot¹⁰: “There were no commitments made in the House.”

次日，众议院民主党第三把交椅Steve Scalise便宣布McConnell是枉费心机：“（因为）众议院并未做出任何承诺。”

Which may prove the liberal critics’ case.

他的这一反应或许佐证了无党派评论家们的看法。

1 melee   

n.混战；混战的人群

参考例句：

• There was a scuffle and I lost my hat in the melee.因发生一场斗殴，我的帽子也在混乱中丢失了。
• In the melee that followed they trampled their mother a couple of times.他们打在一团，七手八脚的又踩了他们的母亲几下。

2 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

4 constituents   

n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素

参考例句：

• She has the full support of her constituents. 她得到本区选民的全力支持。
• Hydrogen and oxygen are the constituents of water. 氢和氧是水的主要成分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 contractors   

n.（建筑、监造中的）承包人( contractor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Contractors winning construction jobs had to kick back 2 per cent of the contract price to the mafia. 赢得建筑工作的承包商得抽出合同价格的百分之二的回扣给黑手党。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 bind   

vt.捆，包扎；装订；约束；使凝固；vi.变硬

参考例句：

• I will let the waiter bind up the parcel for you.我让服务生帮你把包裹包起来。
• He wants a shirt that does not bind him.他要一件不使他觉得过紧的衬衫。

7 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。

8 caucuses   

n.（政党决定政策或推举竞选人的）核心成员( caucus的名词复数 )；决策干部；决策委员会；秘密会议

参考例句：

• Republican caucuses will happen in about 410 towns across Maine. 共和党团会议选举将在缅因州的约410个城镇进行。 来自互联网

9 deferred   

adj.延期的，缓召的v.拖延，延缓，推迟( defer的过去式和过去分词 )；服从某人的意愿，遵从

参考例句：

• The department deferred the decision for six months. 这个部门推迟了六个月才作决定。
• a tax-deferred savings plan 延税储蓄计划

10 moot   

v.提出；adj.未决议的；n.大会；辩论会

参考例句：

• The question mooted in the board meeting is still a moot point.那个在董事会上提出讨论的问题仍未决的。
• The oil versus nuclear equation is largely moot.石油和核能之间的关系还很有争议。