WHEN Newt Gingrichs presidential campaignfoundered last summer, leading to the massresignation of his staff and reports that hiscampaign debt exceeded $1m, the problem wasnot that he seemed to prefer luxury cruisesthrough Greece and Turkey with Mrs Gingrich to the messy business of a politicalcampaign. The problem, as he was only too happyto explain, was that much like Reagan andMargaret Thatcher, Im such an unconventionalpolitical figure that you really need to design aunique campaign that fits the way I operate and what Im trying to do.
当纽特金里奇在去年夏天的总统竞选活动中败阵,导致他的竞选团队人员大量辞职,同时被媒体爆出因竞选他已负债超过100万美元时,他的问题并非比起竞选活动中的各种繁琐事务,他更喜欢和他的妻子一起来个希腊或土耳其豪华游艇巡游。正如他津津乐道的那样,他的问题在于他说的我是像里根和撒切尔夫人这样卓尔不凡的政治人物,因此你们要为我设计独一无二的竞选活动,要适合我所做的以及我想要做的。
What that meant in practice was shilling for money over the internet and turning in someincandescently angry debate performances. It worked, after a fashion. He began rising in thepolls. He announced directly, Im going to be the nominee. But then people startedvoting. The first three contests split, with Rick Santorum squeaking to victory in Iowa afterspending far more time there than any other candidate; Mitt Romney winning NewHampshire, where he has a home; and Mr Gingrich unexpectedly trouncing the oppositionin South Carolina. Then he lost Florida and Nevada in quick succession, his snarlingpomposity punctured by a Romney barrage of negative ads.
实际上,这只不过意味着他的竞选团通过因特网筹了点钱,然后就演变成一场声势浩大的骂战而已。这有些作用。然后他的民调支持率开始攀升。他直接宣布: 我将成为党内提名人。但另一方面人们已经开始投票了。前三名的竞争者各有胜负,里克桑托伦在爱荷华州投入的时间比任何一个候选人都多,侥幸获胜;米特罗姆尼在新罕布什尔州获胜,这是他家乡所在地;然后金里奇出人意料的在南卡罗莱纳州击败对手。紧接着,金里奇在佛罗里达州和内华达州败下阵来,因为罗姆尼用铺天盖地的负面广告,大肆抨击他那咄咄逼人,不可一世的嘴脸。
The Gingrich campaign had a strategy, of sorts: their hero would win the South, endingwith a victory in Louisianas primary on March 24th, whereupon momentum would work itsmagic. That did not happen. Aside from South Carolina, Mr Gingrich has won precisely one ofthe 38 states and territories that have so far voted: his adopted home state of Georgia. Inlate March he sacked one-third of his campaign staff. On April 3rd he decisively lostMaryland, Washington, DC and Wisconsin, his wifes home state. Mr Romney improved hisdelegate total to 634 against 263 for his closest rival, Mr Santorum. The race now goesquiet until April 24th, when five states vote, the biggest prizes being New York and MrSantorums home state of Pennsylvania.
金里奇的竞选团队有一套策略,分为几步:他们的主角金里奇将以南部获胜,其中最后一战是3月24日路易斯安那州的初选胜利,接着竞选势头就会发挥它的魔力。可是事与愿违。除了南卡罗来纳州,金里奇在已经投票的38个州和地区中只在一个地区获得胜利:他的第二故乡乔治亚州。3月底,他把自己竞选团队中三分之一的人给炒鱿鱼了。4月3日,他输掉了马里兰州,华盛顿和他妻子的家乡威斯康星州这些决定性地区的竞选。罗姆尼获得代表人的票数总计提升至634票,其最大的竞争对手桑托利姆则获得263票。选情现在则是平平无奇,直到4月24日才会有大的波动,因为到那时五个大州将开始投票,拥有最多票数的则是纽约和桑托利姆的家乡宾夕法尼亚州.
For the Gingrich campaign, however, the real problem had become clear some time beforethis weeks results. It was the voters. They kept making the wrong decision. And so MrGingrichs flack announced that they were going to be focusing exclusively on what itlltake to win what were going to be calling a big-choice convention in August. In otherwords, having failed to appeal to a majority, or even a plurality, of votersthe people whoostensibly select the candidateMr Gingrich will appeal to their superiors to correct thepeons error. During this campaign Mr Gingrich has consistently claimed that he frightens,and is running against, the Washington establishment, which is of course laughable; heserved ten terms in Congress before becoming a consultant, think-tanker and free-floatingpolicy wonk. This strategy buries even the pretence of anti-establishmentarianism.
对于金里奇的竞选来说,其存在的真正问题在本周投票结果揭晓前一段时间就已经变得清晰了.问题出在选民上。选民们一直犯错。金里奇的广告中宣称,他们将只把重点放在能让他们赢得所谓8月大抉择会战的那些人身上。换句话说,因为他们未能获得大多数,甚至是决定性数目选民的支持,于是金里奇将获取这些人中有话语权的人的支持,来纠正这些劳苦大众的错误。竞选中金里奇一直宣称,他害怕,但又将反对华盛顿权贵们到底,这一说法显然十分可笑。早在金里奇成为一名顾问,智囊团成员和随波逐流的政策专家之前,他就已经连任十届国会成员。这一策略甚至让金里奇无法打着反正统主义的幌子。
Explore our interactive map and guide to the race for the Republican candidacy.He has sincesoftened his stance a bit, but he has also vowed to stay in the race until Mr Romney clinchesa majority. How long that vow will last is anybodys guess. Sheldon Adelson, a casinomagnate who, together with his family, has given Mr Gingrichs Super PAC more than $15m,said that he believes Mr Gingrich is at the end of his line. A recent poll showed that 60% ofRepublicans want him to quit the race.
看看我们的互动地图和本次共和党候选人提名竞选的指南。金里奇的立场已经变得缓和了一些,但他仍发誓将竞选进行到底,直至罗姆尼获得绝大多数选票。这一誓言能维持多久难以预料。赌场大亨谢尔登阿德尔森和他的家族已经给予金里奇的超级政治行动委员会超过1500万美元,这位赌场大亨说他相信金里奇已是穷途末路. 最近的一次民调显示60%的共和党成员希望他退出竞选。
Acknowledging defeat will not be easy. The next presidential race will probably attract amore daunting field of candidates, leaving little room for a man who will then be 72 andwhose House career ended in censure and disgrace. In stump speeches he has traced theorigins of his presidential aspirations back to 1958, when he was 15 years old. In the early1990s he described himself as an advocate of civilisation, definer of civilisation, teacher ofthe rules of civilisationleader of the civilising forces. Or possibly not.
承认失败并不容易。下一次的总统竞选,将吸引更多富有实力,令人望而却步的候选人,这样一来,留给这位72岁,其议会生涯在谴责和耻辱中结束的男人的空间所剩无几。在政治演说中,他曾经追忆他想当总统的起源,当时是1958年,他只有15岁。20世纪90年代早起,他形容自己是一个文明的倡导者,文明的定义者,文明规则的教授者.....文明力量的领袖. 看来事实并非如此。
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