非同尋常的特朗普就職典禮

American presidential inaugurations, with all their pomp and splendour, are a rite of passage but not necessarily memorable. A handful stick out for the first words of the new national chief executive — Franklin D. Roosevelt’s, in 1933 in the depths of the great recession, for “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself” and John F. Kennedy’s, in1961, for “Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country”. Some have grace notes that remain in the mind — as when, in 1977, Jimmy Carter thanked Gerald Ford for all he had done “to heal our country” in the wake of Watergate.

盛大而隆重的美國總統(tǒng)就職典禮是一項權力交接儀式，但不一定令人難忘。少數(shù)就職典禮之所以令人印象深刻，是因為新國家元首的首次講話——1933年美國深陷大蕭條時富蘭克林•D•羅斯福(Franklin D. Roosevelt)在就職典禮上所說的“我們唯一要恐懼的，就是恐懼本身”，以及1961年約翰•F•肯尼迪(John F Kennedy)所說的“不要問你的國家能為你做什么，而要問你能為你的國家做什么”。一些人的優(yōu)雅言辭仍然留在人們的腦海里——比如1977年吉米•卡特(Jimmy Carter)感謝杰拉爾德•福特(Gerald Ford)在“水門事件”(Watergate)后為“治愈我們的國家”所做的一切。

Most have had a feel-good quality, combined with a sense of anticipation, because the US likes to feel good about itself and believes in looking forward not backwards. That was certainly true of Ronald Reagan’s in 1981, a triumph of a new form of conservatism, with Hollywood glamour the icing on the cake; and Barack Obama’s in 2009, reflecting national pride in the election of America’s first non-white president.

大多數(shù)就職典禮都營造了一種感覺良好的氛圍、并給人們留下了一些期許，因為美國喜歡自我感覺良好并且主張展望未來、而不是回顧過去。1981年羅納德•里根(Ronald Reagan)的就職典禮正是這樣，那是新形式保守主義的勝利，還有好萊塢魅力為之錦上添花;2009年巴拉克•奧巴馬(Barack Obama)的就職典禮則體現(xiàn)了選出首位非白人總統(tǒng)的國家自豪感。

The accession of Donald Trump this week simply feels different, less because of the bitterness of the campaign that elected him — though much of that is still palpable — but because no one, including the new president, knows what he will do in office or how he will conduct himself. Governing by Twitter, for example, has no precedent.

唐納德•特朗普(Donald Trump)的就職典禮會有不一樣的感覺，不全是因為選出這樣一位總統(tǒng)的痛苦——盡管這種感覺仍然存在——更是因為包括這位新總統(tǒng)在內，沒人知道他上臺后會做些什么，也不知道他將如何行事。比如，史無前例的Twitter治國。

Nowhere is the sense of apprehension as keenly felt as in the nation’s capital, the belly of the beast of a barely functional democracy, where only 4.1 per cent of its population voted for him and where many are planning to be out of town or drowning their sorrows on the day. That is reflected in big things and little. None of the city’s school marching bands, a staple of inaugural parades, volunteered their services this time; even the National Cathedral choir, which will perform, may do so minus a few sopranos and tenors, according to local news reports.

任何地方的憂慮感都比不上美國首都強烈。作為大體失效的民主這只怪獸的腹地，華盛頓僅有4.1%的人口把選票投給了特朗普，很多人打算在就職典禮當天出城或借酒澆愁。大事小事上都能體現(xiàn)出這種情緒。全城沒有任何一所學校的樂隊(marching band)自愿為此次就職典禮演奏，這本是就職游行中的重要內容;而且，據當?shù)匦侣剤蟮溃瑢榈涠Y演出的國家大教堂(National Cathedral)唱詩班可能會有一些女高音和男高音缺席。

Further afield, superstars such as Elton John and Andrea Bocelli have declined to warble, either out of disapproval of Mr Trump or persuaded not to by public protests. There will be no poets present of the calibre of Robert Frost at JFK’s inaugural, or Maya Angelou at Mr Obama’s. In their place will be a bunch of obscure entertainers from reality TV shows and the rockabilly music genre.

此外，埃爾頓•約翰(Elton John)、安德烈•波切利(Andrea Bocelli)等巨星拒絕獻唱，要么是因為反對特朗普，要么是被公眾抗議所說服。肯尼迪就職典禮上有羅伯特•弗羅斯特(Robert Frost)，奧巴馬就職典禮上有瑪雅•安吉羅(Maya Angelou)，而特朗普的就職典禮上不會有地位相當?shù)脑娙?。上場的將是一群沒有名氣的真人秀演員和鄉(xiāng)村搖滾歌手。

Many politicians, too, have scant enthusiasm for the occasion. The Democratic congressman John Lewis from Georgia, the civil rights icon, has questioned whether Mr Trump is a “legitimate” president, given the Russian hacking attacks, which incited an inevitable early-morning Twitter storm from the president-elect.

很多政治人士對此次就職典禮也缺乏熱情。鑒于俄羅斯進行的黑客攻擊，喬治亞州的民主黨議員、民權偶像約翰•劉易斯(John Lewis)質疑特朗普是否是“合法”總統(tǒng)。不出所料，這招致特朗普于凌晨時分在Twitter上發(fā)起了一波攻擊。

To Mr Trump’s supporters all this smacks of pique and bad manners out of place for a day of celebration. Even some thoughtful progressives are ambivalent about how far to go by way of protest, arguing that it is better to keep the powder dry until there are real policies to oppose rather than shooting off volleys into the air in premature frustration.

對于特朗普的支持者來說，這一切都帶有與慶祝日不相宜的憤怒和不禮貌的味道。甚至一些有見地的進步人士對于抗議程度也很矛盾，認為最好先做好準備，直到真正出臺政策時再起來反對，而不是因為過早產生挫折感而對著空中亂放子彈。

Still, on the day after the inauguration, hundreds of thousands of women will be marching in Washington, and around the country, against the new president not least because he could reshape the Supreme Court in such a way as to imperil their reproductive rights. But, then, one week later the March for Life, which wants abortion outlawed, will also be filling the streets. Such is America today.

在就職典禮次日，數(shù)十萬女性將在華盛頓以及全美各地游行反對新總統(tǒng)，主要因為他可能會在最高法院(Supreme Court)做出某種改變以致危及女性生育權。不過，一周后，反墮胎組織March for Life也將組織人們走上街頭游行。這就是如今的美國。

Mr Trump’s first words will attract much attention, as they should. With his limited vocabulary and inclination to attack anyone who dares criticise him, eloquent oratory and lofty sentiments cannot be expected. He is much more likely to be true to himself and appeal to his base than to the better angels of America’s nature, but the element of surprise cannot be discounted.

特朗普作為美國總統(tǒng)的首次演講將吸引廣泛注意，理應如此。以他有限的詞匯量以及他對任何敢指責自己的人進行攻擊的傾向，不能指望他展現(xiàn)什么辯才或高尚情操。他更可能會真實表現(xiàn)自我，吸引他的支持者、而不是吸引美國“天性中的善良天使”，但也不能低估出現(xiàn)意外的可能。

In truth, a president’s last words are often more interesting than their first. Classic examples must include Dwight Eisenhower’s valedictory warning about the growth of the military-industrial complex, Mr Carter’s on the dangers of the nuclear age and, just last week, Mr Obama’s on the importance of civic engagement in times when authoritarianism is on the rise, as it is today.

事實上，總統(tǒng)離任前的最后演講往往比上臺時的首次演講更有意思。經典例子包括德懷特•艾森豪威爾(Dwight Eisenhower)在告別演說中警告軍工綜合企業(yè)的發(fā)展，卡特警告核時代的危險，還有上周奧巴馬強調在威權主義抬頭的時代——像今天這樣——公民參與的重要性。

But yesterday’s men always command less attention than the next big thing, who happens to be a reality TV/real estate mogul. That may be a brave new world but it may also be a scary one, which is why this inauguration day feels like none that have gone before.

但過去時的領袖受到的關注總是不如下一個大人物，這次碰巧還是一位真人秀明星及房地產大亨。未來或許是一個美麗新世界，但也可能是個可怕世界，這也正是此次總統(tǒng)就職日如此不同以往的原因。