FT社評：希拉里比特朗普更勝任美國總統(tǒng)

Rarely in a US presidential election has the choice been so stark and the stakes so high. The contest between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump has provided high drama, amply demonstrated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s reckless, last-minute intervention in the saga of Mrs Clinton’s emails. But there must be no doubt about the gravity of the 2016 election, for America and the world.

美國大選很少面臨如此嚴峻且高風險的選擇。希拉里•克林頓(Hillary Clinton)和唐納德•特朗普(Donald Trump)的這場爭奪充滿了戲劇性，聯邦調查局(FBI)在最后一刻對希拉里郵件門的魯莽調查，更是充分證明了這一點。但2016年美國大選的重要性毋庸置疑，無論是對美國還是對全世界。

The international order of the past 70 years is fraying, maybe even breaking down. The Brexit vote in June likely removes a pillar of the EU. The Middle East points to a shattered system; further east, in the Pacific, China is becoming more assertive, challenging America’s dominant role in the region and the postwar Bretton Woods system. Under Vladimir Putin, Russia has become emboldened, threatening Nato’s borders, spreading havoc in Syria, and apparently orchestrating leaks to influence the US election itself.

過去70年的國際秩序正在產生裂痕，甚至可能崩潰。6月英國脫歐公投可能撤掉了歐盟的一根支柱。中東秩序顯然已四分五裂，遠東太平洋地區(qū)，中國正變得日益強硬，不斷挑戰(zhàn)美國在該地區(qū)以及戰(zhàn)后布雷頓森林體系(Bretton Woods)的主導地位。俄羅斯在總統(tǒng)弗拉基米爾•普京(Vladimir Putin)治下變得更加大膽，威脅北約邊界，在敘利亞擴散混亂，并且顯然精心安排了泄露事件以影響美國大選本身。

This is a moment for the renewal of American leadership. One candidate has the credentials. Mrs Clinton has served as first lady, senator for New York and US secretary of state. Mr Trump deals in denigration not diplomacy. He has abused allies, threatening to remove east Asia’s nuclear umbrella, sideline Nato and unleash trade wars. Mr Trump casts himself in the role of a western strongman to stand alongside the likes of Mr Putin.

這是美國領導層更迭的時刻。其中一位候選人是有資歷的。希拉里曾擔任第一夫人、紐約州參議員以及美國國務卿。特朗普擅長詆毀，而不是外交。他侮辱美國的盟友，威脅要撤走東亞的核保護傘、退出北約和發(fā)動貿易戰(zhàn)爭。特朗普給自己選了個西方強人的角色，好與普京之類的人并肩。

Mr Trump has demonstrated contempt towards American democracy itself. He has persistently raised the prospect of a rigged election and declined, even when pressed, to guarantee he would accept the result. He has threatened to jail Mrs Clinton. Such arrogance is unprecedented and it points to a fatal flaw in his character. The first role of the president is to be commander-in-chief, in charge of the world’s largest active nuclear arsenal. Mr Trump has a thin skin and a questionable temperament. For all his many years as a reality TV host, he is simply not ready for prime time.

特朗普對美國民主本身表現出了蔑視。他堅稱選舉可能受到操控，即使受到壓力，也不愿保證自己會接受結果。他威脅要囚禁希拉里。其傲慢前所未見，也表現出了他性格中的致命缺陷。美國總統(tǒng)的第一職責是擔任三軍統(tǒng)帥，掌管全世界最大的核武器庫。特朗普為人敏感，性情可疑。雖然他多年擔任真人秀電視節(jié)目主持人，但還不夠格在黃金時段露臉。

Yet Mrs Clinton has much to prove. To many American voters, Mrs Clinton’s decades of public service mean little. She epitomises a remote, self-serving establishment. Her campaign has lacked inspiration. She struggled against Bernie Sanders, a 74-year-old self-styled socialist from Vermont. The uncomfortable truth is that both Mr Sanders and Mr Trump have touched a nerve among voters, tapping into a cynicism about politics which has been growing steadily in the US, fuelled in part by the legacy of the 2008 global financial crisis.

但希拉里也有很多事有待考驗。對許多美國選民來說，希拉里幾十年的公共服務并不代表什么。她是高高在上的、自私自利的權勢集團的一個縮影。她的競選缺乏靈感。她之前在應對74歲、來自佛蒙特州、自詡社會主義者的伯尼•桑德斯(Bernie Sanders)的競爭時頗為艱難。令人不安的是，桑德斯和特朗普都觸動了選民的神經，抓住了人們對美國政治的懷疑，這種懷疑一直在美國滋長，部分是受到2008年全球金融危機造成的影響的推動。

The American dream, so potent for immigrants and US citizens alike, has become more elusive. The middle class has been squeezed for several decades but the 1 per cent have become wealthier. Populism has staged a revival, supported by a media which have become more polarised than ever. In the search for higher ratings, too many have been happy to strike a Faustian bargain with Mr Trump.

移民和美國公民心中強烈的美國夢已變得越來越難以企及。中產階層被壓榨了幾十年，最富的1%人群卻變得日益富有。民粹主義再度抬頭，比以往任何時候都更加兩極分化的媒體對其提供了支持。為了吸引更多眼球，有太多媒體樂意與特朗普進行一場浮士德交易。

If elected, Mrs Clinton must work out how to heal the divisiveness which has characterised the 2016 election. If Mr Trump contests the result, her task will be harder. In the national interest she must show a determination to work with a fractured Republican party. This proved beyond President Barack Obama, whose fatigue with Congress verged on the fatalistic. Mrs Clinton, who has worked with ideological foes, has the chance for a fresh start.

希拉里如果當選，必須設法彌合已成為2016年大選特點的分歧。如果特朗普對結果有異議，她的這項任務將更加艱巨。為了國家利益，她必須表現出與分裂的共和黨一起合作的決心。事實表明美國總統(tǒng)巴拉克•奧巴馬(Barack Obama)未能做到這一點，他對美國國會的疲于應對就像是聽天由命。曾與意識形態(tài)敵人合作過的希拉里有機會重新開始。

After years of gridlock, the domestic agenda is clear: tax reform, an overhaul of America’s broken immigration system and a boost to infrastructure. Mrs Clinton has a sound programme, though she would have to face down Mr Sanders and fellow Democrats bitterly opposed to a lowering of the headline corporate tax. She would also be wise to review her cynical U-turn on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, a vital building bloc in the liberal world trade order and a bridge to hard-pressed allies in Asia, notably Japan.

經過多年的僵局，國內議程已然明確：改革稅制，全面改革美國不健全的移民制度，以及改善基礎設施。希拉里有一個合理方案，不過她必須戰(zhàn)勝強烈反對降低總體企業(yè)稅的桑德斯和民主黨同僚。她還應重新審視自己對《跨太平洋伙伴關系協(xié)定》(TPP)出于利己動機的大轉變，這樣才明智。TPP是全球自由貿易秩序的一個重要組成部分，也是美國與受到強大壓力的亞洲盟友、尤其是日本之間的橋梁。

The 2016 election, more than any in recent memory, is a test for the legitimacy of the US political system, with profound implications for the liberal world order. Mrs Clinton carries enough baggage to fill a Boeing 747. She is not trusted by the majority of voters.

2016年大選是對美國政治制度合法性的一場考驗，并將對全球自由秩序產生深遠影響，其重要性超過近期記憶中的歷次大選。希拉里背負著沉重的包袱。她沒有得到絕大多數選民的信任。

But she is manifestly more competent than Mr Trump whose braggadocio, divisiveness and meanness are on daily display. Despite her faults, Mrs Clinton is eminently qualified to be the first woman elected to the White House. She has the Financial Times’ endorsement.

可是她顯然比特朗普更能勝任，后者日日上演著自吹自擂、挑撥離間和卑鄙惡劣。盡管犯過錯誤，希拉里依然有資格成為第一位獲選執(zhí)掌白宮的女性。英國《金融時報》支持她。