美國人對政治, 用厭惡來自形容已經不夠

美國人對政治的看法, 用厭惡來自形容已經不夠

How do Americans feel about politics? 'Disgust isn't a strong enough word.'

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2023/oct/06/how-do-americans-feel-about-politics-disgust-isnt-/   Oct. 6, 2023 

By Jack Healy, J. David Goodman, Jenna Russell and Alan BlinderNew York Times

作者：傑克·希利、J·大衛·古德曼、珍娜·拉塞爾和艾倫·布林德《紐約時報》

惠特尼·史密斯的手機響起了她母親發來的短信，提醒她華盛頓最近發生的令人難以置信的混亂：“極右翼驅逐了眾議院議長。 現在完全混亂了。”

35 歲的史密斯是一名簿記員，在菲尼克斯郊區注冊為獨立人士，他不想參與其中。 她試圖通過投票、誌願參與當地競選活動和參加城市會議來參與公民生活。 但在過去的一周裏，政府勉強避免關門和共和黨控製的眾議院領導層政變的混亂證實了許多美國人對聯邦政府最憤世嫉俗的感覺。

“這就像，天哪，現在怎麽辦？” 她說。

抱怨政治是美國曆史悠久的消遣——但最近，該國的政治情緒已跌至有記錄以來最糟糕的水平。

在經曆了特朗普總統任期的混亂、流行病、國會叛亂、通貨膨脹、多次總統彈劾以及極右翼共和黨人關於 2020 年選舉舞弊的普遍謊言之後，選民們表示，他們感到疲倦和憤怒。

在最近全國各地的數十次采訪中，無論年輕還是年長的選民都對下一次超越黨派界限的總統選舉表達了普遍的悲觀情緒，並對政治機構的信心搖搖欲墜。

白宮和國會已投入數十億美元來修複和改善國家的道路、港口、管道和互聯網。 他們已經批準了數千億美元用於應對氣候變化和降低處方藥的成本。 喬·拜登總統取消了數十億美元的學生債務。 然而，這些成就尚未完全得到選民的認可。

一小群極右翼共和黨人將國家推向政府關閉的邊緣，然後在他們煽動投票時使國會陷入混亂，在民主黨的支持下，眾議院議長、加利福尼亞州共和黨人凱文·麥卡錫被免職。 民主黨人押注選民會將麻煩歸咎於共和黨人。 本周接受采訪的許多選民表示，他們認為整個事件是華盛頓廣泛失靈的證據，並指責政治領導人被工作場所的戲劇所吞噬，而犧牲了他們本應服務的人民。

“他們似乎與我們格格不入，”57 歲的銀行高管凱文·巴斯 (Kevin Bass) 說，他住在德克薩斯州西部鄉村小鎮紐霍姆 (New Home)。 他在當地學校董事會任職，有兩個孩子在公立學校，另一個在大學。 他稱自己是保守派，兩次投票支持前總統唐納德·特朗普。 “我並不真正認為任何一方都對我們的國家有利，”他說。

選民們表示，在人們全神貫注於如何支付不斷上漲的醫療保健和食品雜貨賬單，或應對不斷增長的醫療保健和食品雜貨賬單之際，華盛頓的內訌以及共和黨人對債務違約和政府關門的不顧後果地讓人們的工資、醫療保健和福利麵臨風險。 快速變暖的氣候在全國幾乎每個角落引發了自然災害。

“厭惡這個詞還不夠強烈，”亞特蘭大地區的民主黨人、五個孩子的祖母比安卡·瓦拉 (Bianca Vara) 說，她在一個跳蚤市場上經營著一個攤位，那裏充斥著政治討論。

她說，她希望華盛頓領導人解決槍支暴力問題，或者隻是有意義地打擊她接到的機器人電話。 相反，她沮喪地看著共和黨控製的眾議院因自相殘殺而震動。

“這比小學還糟糕，”她說，“就像操場上，就像躲避球一樣：‘你出局了！ 你不再是說話者了！ 用紅球打他的頭！’”

一些人表示，他們故意忽略政治新聞，而是關注奶油奶酪價格（6.99 美元）等細節或完全與政治無關的事情——芝加哥熊隊戰績為 1-4，泰勒·斯威夫特出現在堪薩斯城酋長隊的比賽中 。

當史密斯的母親向家庭短信鏈發送麥卡錫被罷免眾議院議長的消息時，沒有人回複。 最終，史密斯回複了一張她剛剛在家裏擺上的新架子的照片。

“麥卡錫是誰？ 我什至不知道。”38 歲的羅斯瑪麗·沃森 (Rosemary Watson) 說道，她是亞利桑那州梅薩市的一名注冊獨立人士，該州是一個戰場州，在過去的兩次選舉中，民主黨以微弱優勢擊敗了特朗普式的共和黨。 “為了我自己的健康和福祉，我特意做出了這個選擇。”

沃森是切羅基族成員，她在 2020 年投票支持特朗普，並表示拜登為保護美洲原住民神聖土地或提供數十億美元的新部落資金而采取的行動並沒有讓她感到政治上的感動。 她表示，她將支持小羅伯特·F·肯尼迪 (Robert F. Kennedy Jr.) 參加 2024 年總統競選，以此對兩黨製度進行一次衝擊。

58 歲的辛西婭·泰勒 (Cynthia Taylor) 是休斯敦地區的一名共和黨律師助理，她的丈夫在一家步槍製造商工作，她對麥卡錫的下台和最近的政府關門感到震驚，稱這種邊緣政策是美國社會日益無法無天的表現。

“我們似乎開始走這樣的路線：如果我不同意你的觀點，我就會把你踢出去，”她說。 “每個人都是為了自己。 每個人都為了 15 分鍾的成名而出局。”

皮尤研究中心 7 月份進行的一項調查發現，這個國家因其政治領導人的不滿而團結在一起，這種不滿跨越了種族、年齡和黨派分歧。 約 65% 的受訪美國人表示，當他們想到政治時，他們感到精疲力盡。

隻有 16% 的美國成年人表示他們信任聯邦政府，接近七十年來民意調查的最低水平。 近30%的人表示不喜歡民主黨和共和黨，創曆史新高。 然而近年來，美國人的投票人數創下了曆史新高——主要是為了連任現任議員。

“我從沒想過我會生活在這樣的時代，”新罕布什爾州多佛市 66 歲的寡婦辛迪·斯瓦西 (Cindy Swasey) 說。 斯瓦西兩次投票支持特朗普，但認為自己是獨立人士，她說她曾經喜歡佛羅裏達州共和黨眾議員馬特·蓋茨(Matt Gaetz)，以及他在發揮核心作用之前為國會注入的更新、年輕的活力。 在本周的動蕩中。

她最近決定不觀看未來的總統辯論。

美國工薪階層和中產階級的工資最近有所上漲，但許多人表示，與不斷上漲的生活成本相比，漲幅相形見絀。 從汽車行業到醫療保健行業再到好萊塢，成千上萬的工會工人用腳投票，通過罷工爭取更好的合同。

哥倫比亞廣播公司 (CBS) 節目《海豹突擊隊》的編劇助理麥金利·邦迪克 (McKinley Bundick) 表示：“現在，我要做的就是重新開始工作，弄清楚如何把食物放在盤子裏、如何為我的頭頂遮風擋雨、如何為我的車加油。” 在美國作家協會罷工期間，他失業了五個月。

幾名民主黨選民表示，他們對美國政治現狀的厭惡源於特朗普的憤怒不滿以及煽動 1 月 6 日騷亂的選舉謊言。 與此同時，一些人表示，他們擔心特朗普和拜登之間再次展開競爭的前景，寧願快進到下一個總統周期，找到新的人選——任何人。

“這就是你們能給我們雙方最好的回報了嗎？ 你在開玩笑吧？” 49 歲的芝加哥科技產品專家 Joseph Albanese 表示，他在 2020 年投票給了拜登，但正在考慮完全跳過明年的選舉。

對於生活在與國會大廈完全不同的海岸的人們來說——尤其是年輕選民——華盛頓的功能失調似乎就像遙遠世界中聳人聽聞的內訌。

“這是壓倒性的； “發生了很多事情，”28 歲的迪安娜·比蒙 (Dionna Beamon) 說，她住在洛杉磯南部的瓦茨 (Watts) 社區。 “所以說真的，無知就是福。”

發型師比蒙表示，她和她的朋友們更關心包括心理健康在內的問題。 她的母親不到兩年前因心髒病去世，她一直在努力解決如何緩解悲傷。

“我覺得現在很多人都很沮喪，”她說。 “對於我這個年齡段的人來說，這是一個很大的話題。 新冠病毒爆發後，世界已經不一樣了，當它開始時，我們才 20 歲出頭。”

21 歲的維維安·桑托斯·史密斯 (Vivian Santos-Smith) 是華盛頓特區霍華德大學的一名大四學生，她表示，她最擔心的是畢業後必須開始償還 10,000 美元的學生債務。 拜登本周取消了 90 億美元的學生貸款債務，但他取消約 4000 億美元的更廣泛努力卻被最高法院挫敗。

她想成為一名政治科學家，而她麵臨的首要挑戰之一就是試圖理解這一時刻。

“看來《紙牌屋》現在已經成為現實了，”她說。 “前景黯淡。”

美國選民對政治高度反感 惡心都不足形容

www.creaders.net | 2023-10-06 23:40:51  中央社

美國聯邦眾議院議長麥卡錫遭自家共和黨強硬派發動罷免而落馬。美國媒體發現，選民不分黨派、種族、年齡、地域，均反感政治，還有人覺得“噁爛”都不足以形容政壇紛亂。

“紐約時報”指出，曆經川普總統任內紛擾、COVID-19疫情、國會山莊暴動、高通膨、多番總統彈劾攻防以及共和黨極右派仍四處宣揚2020年大選舞弊後，美國選民表示已感厭倦與憤怒。

紐時近期在全美各地的數十次街訪發現，選民不分年齡與黨派，普遍對2024年總統大選感不抱期待，對政治製度的信念也搖搖欲墜。

57歲的巴斯（Kevin Bass）是住在德州西部小鎮一名銀行主管，同時也任職當地學校董事會，3個孩子都還在念書，他自稱屬於保守派且2016、2020兩次大選都投川普。如今他覺得政治人物與民眾嚴重脫節，“我真的覺得這兩個黨都不是好東西”。
住在亞特蘭大地區的華拉（Bianca Vara）是位有5名孫子的祖母，在跳蚤市場擺攤且常與人聊政治。屬民主黨的華拉表示希望華府要員處理槍枝暴力嚴重問題，就算隻解決氾濫的語音電話轟炸也行，但卻隻能沮喪地看共和黨掌握的眾議院內鬥。

華拉說：“用噁爛（disgust）都不足以形容。這比小學還不如，跟在操場打躲避球般你砸他、他扔你，把人打出場一樣。”

美國選民對政治高度反感 惡心都不足形容

（圖/NBC News）

好幾位受訪者表示，他們刻意不看政治新聞，關注如奶油乳酪價格等瑣事，或是像支持的職業球隊究竟第幾名、女星泰勒絲（Taylor Swift）演場會等，反正就是不想碰政治議題。

58歲的泰勒（Cynthia Taylor）住在休斯敦從事律師助理，丈夫在步槍製造商上班。共和黨人的她驚駭於麥卡錫（Kevin McCarthy）遭罷免，覺得這種劍走偏鋒的極限作法是美國社會越來越無法無天的徵兆。

泰勒說：“我們看似已開始走上『若不同意你，就把你趕走』。每個人都隻為一己之私。”

皮尤研究中心（Pew Research Center）今年7月所做調查發現，不分黨派、種族與年齡的美國民眾，都一致對自家政治領袖不滿。65%的受訪者表示，一想到政治就覺得沒力。

隻有16%的美國成人表示信任聯邦政府，幾乎是作相關調查70年來的最低水準；近30%的人表示兩黨都討厭，創調查新高。

一些民主黨選民表示，他們對美國政治現狀的反感源於川普的招牌憤怒牢騷及煽動2021年1月6日國會山莊暴動的選舉謊言，很怕看到2024又再次上演“拜登vs川普”，也很想跳過這次等2028年的新麵孔。

49歲的艾班尼斯（Joseph Albanese）是一名在芝加哥的技術產品專家，2020年投給拜登，但這回他考慮明年不投票，“這就是兩黨所能端出的最佳對戰組合？開什麽玩笑”。

21歲的桑托斯史密斯（Vivian Santos-Smith）目前是曆史悠久的傳統非裔院校“霍華大學”（Howard University）高年級生，她說將來想當政治學者，但第一個挑戰是得先搞清楚當前的美國政壇。

她說：“現在看起來宛如『紙牌屋』（House of Cards，美國一部政治權謀題材網絡連續劇）真實上演，前景真是暗淡。”

How do Americans feel about politics? ‘Disgust isn't a strong enough word.'

https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2023/oct/06/how-do-americans-feel-about-politics-disgust-isnt-/

Oct. 6, 2023 

By Jack Healy, J. David Goodman, Jenna Russell and Alan BlinderNew York Times

Whitney Smith’s phone buzzed with a text from her mother, alerting her to the latest can-you-believe-it mess in Washington: “Far right ousted the House speaker. Total chaos now.”

Smith, 35, a bookkeeper and registered independent in suburban Phoenix, wanted no part of it. She tries to stay engaged in civic life by voting, volunteering in local campaigns and going to city meetings. But over the past week, the pandemonium of a narrowly averted government shutdown and leadership coup in the Republican-controlled House confirmed many Americans’ most cynical feelings about the federal government.

“It was just like, Oh God, what now?” she said.

Griping about politics is a time-honored American pastime – but lately, the country’s political mood has plunged to some of the worst levels on record.

After weathering the tumult of the Trump presidency, a pandemic, the Capitol insurrection, inflation, multiple presidential impeachments and far-right Republicans’ pervasive lies about fraud in the 2020 election, voters say they feel tired and angry.

In dozens of recent interviews across the country, voters young and old expressed a broad pessimism about the next presidential election that transcends party lines, as well as a teetering faith in political institutions.

The White House and Congress have pumped out billions of dollars to fix and improve the nation’s roads, ports, pipelines and internet. They have approved hundreds of billions to combat climate change and lower the cost of prescription drugs. President Joe Biden has canceled billions more in student debt. Yet those accomplishments have not fully registered with voters.

A small group of hard-right Republicans drove the country to the brink of a government shutdown, then plunged Congress into chaos when they instigated the vote, that with Democratic support, removed House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. Democrats are betting that voters will blame Republicans for the trouble. Many voters interviewed this week said they viewed the whole episode as evidence of broad dysfunction in Washington and blamed political leaders for being consumed by workplace drama at the expense of the people they are meant to serve.

“They seem so disconnected from us,” said Kevin Bass, 57, a bank executive who lives in New Home, a rural West Texas town. He serves on the local school board, and has two children in public school and another in college. He describes himself as conservative who voted for former President Donald Trump both times. “I don’t really look at either party as benefiting our country,” he said.

Voters said that Washington infighting and the Republicans’ flirtation with debt default and government shutdowns recklessly put people’s paychecks, health care and benefits at risk at a moment when they are preoccupied with how to pay rising health care and grocery bills, or to cope with a fast-warming climate unleashing natural disasters in nearly every corner of the nation.

“Disgust isn’t a strong enough word,” said Bianca Vara, a Democrat and grandmother of five in the Atlanta area who runs a stall at a flea market that crackles with discussions of politics.

 

She said she wanted leaders in Washington to address gun violence or maybe just meaningfully crack down on the robocalls she gets. Instead, she watched with dismay as the Republican-controlled House was convulsed with an internecine melee.

“It’s worse than in elementary school,” she said, “Like a playground, like dodgeball: ‘You’re out! You’re not the speaker anymore! Hit him in the head with a red ball!’”

Several people said they purposely tune out political news, focusing instead on details such as the price of cream cheese ($6.99) or matters wholly unconnected to politics – the Chicago Bears are 1-4, and Taylor Swift is showing up at Kansas City Chiefs games.

When Smith’s mother texted the news of McCarthy’s ouster as House speaker to the family text message chain, nobody responded. Eventually, Smith replied with a photo of new shelves she had just put up at home.

“Who’s McCarthy? I don’t even know,” said Rosemary Watson, 38, a registered independent in Mesa, Arizona, a battleground state that has narrowly elected Democrats over Trump-style Republicans in the past two elections. “I’ve purposely made that choice for my own health and well-being.”

Watson, a member of the Cherokee Nation, voted for Trump in 2020 and said she did not feel politically moved by actions Biden has taken to conserve land sacred to Native Americans or to provide billions of dollars in new tribal funding. She said she would support Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in the 2024 presidential race as a jolt to the two-party system.

Cynthia Taylor, 58, a Republican paralegal in the Houston area whose husband works for a rifle manufacturer, was aghast at the ouster of McCarthy and the latest near-shutdown, calling the brinkmanship a symptom of growing lawlessness in American society.

“We seem to be starting to go down the line of, if I don’t agree with you, I’m going to kick you out,” she said. “Everybody is out for themselves. Everybody is out for their 15 minutes of fame.”

A survey that the Pew Research Center conducted in July found a country united by a discontent with their political leaders that crosses race, age and partisan divides. Some 65% of Americans polled said they felt exhausted when they thought about politics.

Only 16% of American adults said they trusted the federal government, close to the lowest levels in seven decades of polling. Nearly 30% of people said they disliked both the Democratic and Republican parties, a record high. Yet in recent years, Americans have turned out to voted in record numbers – mostly to reelect incumbents.

“I never thought I’d live in times like this,” said Cindy Swasey, a 66-year-old widow in Dover, New Hampshire. Swasey, who voted twice for Trump but thinks of herself as an independent, said she used to like Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and the infusion of newer, younger energy he had brought to Congress – before he played a central role in the turmoil this week.

She has recently decided to skip watching future presidential debates.

Working-class and middle-class Americans have seen their wages rise lately, but many say the gains pale in comparison with the rising cost of living. Thousands of union workers, from the automotive industry to health care to Hollywood, have voted with their feet by striking for better contracts.

“Right now, it’s just been about getting back to work – figuring out how to put food on my plate and keep a roof over my head and put gas in my car,” said McKinley Bundick, a writer’s assistant for CBS program “SEAL Team” who was out of work for five months while the Writers Guild of America was on strike.

Several Democratic voters said their revulsion with the state of American politics was rooted in Trump’s brand of angry grievance and the election lies that stoked the Jan. 6 rioters. At the same time, several said they were dreading the prospect of another contest between Trump and Biden, and would rather fast-forward through the next presidential cycle and find someone – anyone – new.

“This is the best you can give us from both parties? Are you kidding me?” said Joseph Albanese, a 49-year-old technology product specialist in Chicago who voted for Biden in 2020 but is considering skipping next year’s election altogether.

For people living on an entirely different coast from the Capitol – especially younger voters – Washington’s dysfunction can seem like sensational infighting in a distant world.

“It’s overwhelming; it’s a lot going on,” said Dionna Beamon, 28, who lives in the Watts neighborhood of South Los Angeles. “So really, ignorance is bliss.”

Beamon, a hairstylist, said she and her friends were more concerned about issues including mental health. Her mother died of a heart attack less than two years ago, and she has grappled with how to address her grief.

“I feel like a lot of people are depressed now,” she said. “That’s a huge topic for my age group. The world hasn’t been the same after COVID, and when it started, we were in our early 20s.”

Vivian Santos-Smith, 21, a senior at Howard University in Washington, D.C., said her biggest concern was the $10,000 of student debt she would have to start repaying after graduation. Biden canceled $9 billion in student loan debt this week, but his wider efforts to cancel some $400 billion more were scuttled by the Supreme Court.

She wants to be a political scientist, and one of her first challenges is trying to make sense of this moment.

“It seems as if ‘House of Cards’ is reality now,” she said. “The outlook is just bleak.”

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.