二、美式选举民主日益空心化
II. Hollowed-out American-style Electoral Democracy文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
政治献金使美式选举成为富人游戏，两党政治异化为极化政治，美式民主正在失去民意基础。美国前总统卡特曾指出：“金钱政治对美国政治体系构成不可逆转的损害，这不是民主政治而是属于少数人的寡头政治。”（注28）文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
Political donations have made American elections a game for the rich, alienation of two-party politics has turned into polarized politics, and American democracy is losing its foundation in public support. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter once said political bribery has tainted the U.S. political system. “It’s just an oligarchy with unlimited political bribery being at the essence of getting the nominations for President, or to elect the President,” Carter said.文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
金钱选举再创历史纪录。美式选举是美式民主的核心，靠金钱提供能量。随着2010年和2014年两次捐款限制的松绑，选举费用一再飙升。美国政治捐献数据库“公开秘密”的研究显示，2022年美国中期选举的竞选花费总计近170亿美元，成为史上最昂贵的选举。其中，联邦候选人和政治行动委员会在竞选中花费高达89亿美元，州候选人、政党委员会和投票举措委员会在竞选中花费高达78亿美元，均创下历史纪录。（注29）美国有线电视新闻网2022年12月8日报道，2022年花费最多的5个州的参议员选举总计耗费了近13亿美元。其中，宾夕法尼亚州的参议员选举投入近3.75亿美元。（注30）文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
Money in elections has set a new record. American elections are at the heart of its democracy, powered by money. Election costs have soared since donation limits were lifted in 2010 and again in 2014. According to an analysis published by OpenSecrets, the total cost of the 2022 state and federal midterm elections was nearly 17 billion dollars, the most expensive election in history. Federal candidates and political committees spent 8.9 billion dollars, while state candidates, party committees, and ballot measure committees spent 7.8 billion dollars, both of which set all-time records. CNN reported on Dec. 8, 2022, that the five most expensive Senate races of 2022 have seen nearly 1.3 billion dollars in spending across the primary and general elections. Leading the way is the Pennsylvania Senate race, where nearly 375 million dollars have been spent on the race this cycle.文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/14339.html
政治献金缔造寡头政治。美国政治被资本绑架，存在稳定的“金钱－回报”关系，“民有、民治、民享”变成了“1%的人所有、1%的人治理、1%的人享用”，正如“占领华尔街运动”的标语所示：“我们是99%的民众，但被1%的人所控制”。（注31）耶鲁大学政治学教授海伦·兰德摩尔2021年12月在《外交政策》发表文章指出，美国的民主“缺少了真正来自人民的力量”。（注32）“占人口极小部分的极富阶层可以利用极高的经济地位来推动一套政策优先服务于他们。”（注33）《财富》杂志网站2022年12月9日发表题为《亿万富翁有额外的万亿美元来影响中期选举》的文章指出，截至10月底，美国亿万富翁在选举中的花费高达8.8亿美元，最终总额可能接近10亿美元，亿万富翁正以前所未有的方式提供选举资金。美国税收公平组织执行董事弗兰克·克莱门特表示，亿万富翁的财富一直在“淹没我们的民主”。（注34）路透社2022年11月9日报道，自2021年1月1日至2022年9月30日，美国亿万富翁的政治献金占所有联邦政治项目献金的15%，远高于2020年选举周期的11%。美国富豪乔治·索罗斯是出资最高的个人捐赠者，其政治献金超过1.28亿美元。（注35）富豪以金钱开路，操控选举结果，美式选举越来越背离民主的本质。
Political donations create an oligarchy. U.S. politics has been kidnapped by capital and there is a stable “money-return” relationship. “Of the people, by the people, for the people” has become “of the 1 percent, by the 1 percent, and for the 1 percent,” as the slogan of the Occupy Wall Street movement says: “We are the 99 percent, but controlled by the 1 percent.” Helene Landemore, a political theorist at Yale University, wrote in an article published by the Foreign Policy magazine in December 2021 that American democracy lacks “people’s power,” and that only the very rich, a very small part of the population, can use their very high economic status to push for a set of policy priorities that serve themselves.
“American billionaires spent a whopping 880 million dollars on the elections by the end of October, with the final total likely approaching an astronomical 1 billion dollars. That’s a game-changing amount of money that undoubtedly influenced the electoral outcomes we are now seeing,” Fortune magazine wrote on Dec. 9, 2022, in a report, titled “Billionaires had an extra 1 trillion dollars to influence the midterm elections. Save American democracy by taxing extreme wealth.”
Billionaire wealth has been, as Americans for Tax Fairness Executive Director Frank Clemente put it, “drowning our democracy,” the magazine reported. Billionaires made up 15 percent of all federal political itemized donations from Jan. 1, 2021, to Sept. 30, 2022, up from 11 percent in the 2020 election cycle, Reuters reported on Nov. 9, 2022, adding that Financier George Soros was the top individual donor, spending more than 128 million dollars to support Democratic campaigns. With plutocrats using their money to control the outcome of elections, U.S. elections are increasingly out of line with the nature of democracy.
“黑金”捐赠暗中操控选举走向。“黑金”一直在无形地左右美国选举。布伦南司法中心2022年11月16日发表文章指出，四个与党派结盟的“黑金”团体通过向姐妹超级政治行动委员会捐款或购买广告等方式，在2022年中期选举周期注入了近3亿美元的“黑金”，还有另外数百个政治上活跃的团体向选举注入了秘密资金。（注36）英国《卫报》网站2022年8月29日发表题为《数十亿美元“黑金”正在影响美国政治》的文章披露，一位亿万富翁秘密转移16亿美元给一个支持共和党的政治团体，这是美国历史上被曝光的最大一笔“黑金”。2020年，有价值超过10亿美元的“黑金”绕过薄弱的信息披露规则涌入美国大选。这种情况在2022年的中期选举中更加严重，支持两党参选国会议员的主要超级政治行动委员会都是由不需要披露捐助者的匿名“黑金”团体资助的。（注37）“黑金”暗中俘获美国政党和政府，广大选民沦为政治游戏的工具。
Dark money donations secretly manipulate the direction of elections. Dark money has been invisibly influencing U.S. elections. The Brennan Center for Justice reported on Nov. 16, 2022, that four party-aligned dark money groups pumped almost 300 million dollars into this election cycle by giving to sister super political action committees (PACs) or buying cleverly worded ads. There are hundreds more politically active groups pouring secret money into the elections.
A billionaire secretly transferred 1.6 billion dollars to a Republican political group, the largest known political advocacy donation in American history, according to a report titled “Billions in ‘dark money’ is influencing US politics” by the Guardian on Aug. 29, 2022. In 2020 alone, more than 1-billion-dollar worth of dark money flooded around weak disclosure rules and into America’s elections. Heading into the 2022 election, the situation is getting worse. The two parties’ major Senate and House Super PACs are all being funded by anonymous dark money groups that are not required to disclose their donors. Dark money has secretly captured the U.S. political parties and government, and the majority of voters have become tools of political games.
多重手法并用操弄选举结果。“许多美国人完全摒弃了平等的观念，而常常正是由这些摒弃平等观念的人制定他人不得不遵守的规则。”（注38）限制选民投票资格的法律频繁出台。布伦南司法中心2022年5月26日发表的研究指出，2021年美国有18个州通过了34项限制投票的法律。在2022年的立法季，有39个州的立法机关审议了至少393项限制性法案，通过设置一系列投票障碍，极大地制约了有色人种选民行使投票权。亚利桑那州颁布了规制选民登记中提供身份证明文件的法律，多达20万名选民可能面临被取消登记的风险。（注39）“全球反对仇恨和极端主义组织”2022年8月4日发表题为《美国人的恐惧感抑制民主参与》的报告指出，40%的非洲裔和37%的拉美裔美国人担心被剥夺投票权利。（注40）英国《卫报》网站2022年1月8日发表题为《1890年的种族主义法律仍在阻止成千上万的美国黑人投票》的文章指出，严苛的投票资格法律阻止了密西西比州近16%适龄投票的非洲裔美国人进行投票。该州作为非洲裔最集中的地区之一，一个多世纪以来从未选举出一名非洲裔担任公职。（注41）“美国城市联盟”2022年4月12日发布《2022年非洲裔美国人状况报告：摧毁民主的阴谋笼罩之下》指出，过去一年，有20个州利用人口普查数据重新划分选区，剥夺了非洲裔等大量少数族裔选民的投票权。（注42）这些操纵选举的手段变相剥夺了大量选民的投票资格，平等的选举权名存实亡。
Multiple tactics and manipulation of election results. Many Americans have completely abandoned the idea of equality, and it is often these people who reject the idea of equality who set the rules that others have to follow, said J. R. Pole in his book titled “The Pursuit of Equality in American History.” Laws restricting voters’ eligibility to vote are frequently introduced. According to the study published by the Brennan Center for Justice on May 26, 2022, 18 states passed 34 restrictive laws in 2021. For the 2022 legislative session, lawmakers in 39 states have considered at least 393 restrictive bills, which have disproportionately affected voters of color by setting up a series of voting obstacles. As many as 200,000 voters could be at risk of having their registrations canceled after Arizona enacted a law regulating the provision of documentary proof of citizenship for voter registration. On Aug. 4, 2022, the Global Organization Against Hate and Extremism published a report titled “Americans’ Fears Suppressing Participation in Democracy,” which said that 40 percent of Black people and 37 percent of Hispanic people very worried being denied the ability to cast a ballot. Strict voting eligibility laws blocked nearly 16 percent of Mississippi’s Black voting-age population from casting a ballot. Mississippi has one of the highest concentrations of Black people in the country, yet has not elected a Black person to statewide office in well over a century, reported The Guardian on its website in an article entitled “The racist 1890 law that’s still blocking thousands of Black Americans from voting” on Jan. 8, 2022. The National Urban League’s release of the “2022 State of Black America: Under Siege the Plot to Destroy Democracy” on April 12, 2022, showed that in 2021 alone, 20 states have leveraged census data to redraw congressional maps. These means of manipulating elections have deprived a large number of voters of their voting eligibility, leaving equal voting rights to exist on paper only.
美式选举伴随暴力与恐吓。美国政治史上一直不乏暴力与恐怖。历史上，臭名昭著的“三K党”等团体曾以殴打、私刑、暗杀等暴力形式阻止非洲裔投票，造成的恐惧心理阴影延续至今。布伦南司法中心2022年10月28日发表的研究指出，美国选民在投票时会受到来自民间团体的恐吓。在亚利桑那州，右翼极端主义团体招募志愿者监视投票箱，这些志愿者经常全副武装出现在投票现场。（注43）“全球反对仇恨和极端主义组织”2022年8月4日发布的报告指出，美国民众的恐惧感日益增加，少数族裔尤其关注投票安全，选民普遍对投票站的安全性感到担忧，63%的受访者表示，他们“非常担心”会在投票站遭遇暴力、骚扰或恐吓。（注44）私刑心理阴影与恐惧氛围成为选民行使选举权的极大障碍。
American elections are accompanied by violence and intimidation. Its political history has not been short of violence and terror. Historically, groups such as the notorious Ku Klux Klan prevented African Americans from voting through violence such as beatings, lynchings, and assassinations, creating a sense of fear that continues to this day.
Voters may face intimidation at the polls and beyond from vigilante actors, the Brennan Center for Justice said in a report released on Oct. 28, 2022, adding that in Arizona, right-wing extremist groups have recruited volunteers to monitor drop boxes, some of whom often showed up armed and in tactical gear.
The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism said in a report on Aug. 4, 2022, that there is a growing sense of fear among Americans, with minorities particularly concerned about security at the polls and voters generally worried about safety at polling stations. Overall, 63 percent of those surveyed said they are “very worried” about such things as violence, harassment, and intimidation happening at their polling place. The psychological shadow of lynching and the atmosphere of fear became a great obstacle for voters to exercise their right to vote.
两党政治异化为极化政治。政治极化特别是两党政治的极化构成近三十年来美国政治的一个最显著的特点。民主党、共和党之间意识形态分歧与对立持续扩大，加剧美国社会撕裂，导致美国政治空转。美国广播公司新闻网“538”民意调查2022年6月14日发布的调查结果显示，28%的美国人将“政治极端主义或两极分化”列为国家面临的最重要问题之一。64%的人认为政治两极化主要是由政治和社会精英推动的。（注45）美国全国广播公司新闻网2022年10月23日发布的调查结果显示，81%的民主党人认为，共和党的议题对国家构成威胁，如不加以制止将会摧毁美国；79%的共和党人也同样认为民主党的议题将摧毁美国。71%的选民认为美国正朝着错误的方向发展。民调专家霍威特评价道，“选民们似乎不再寻求整个国家达成共识，他们只想要分裂”。（注46）政治极化和社会撕裂导致民主共识难以达成，大选闹剧和选后乱局成为美国政治的显著特征。范德堡大学政治学教授马克·J.赫瑟林顿和伊利诺伊大学政治学教授托马斯·J.鲁道夫合著的《为何华盛顿不再发挥作用：两极分化、政治信任与治理危机》一书分析了美国政治机能失调的根源，指出“政治上的信任因党派而两极分化从而导致缺乏政策共识和政治体系陷入僵化，也没有任何妥协的动力”。（注47）
Two-party politics has become a polarized one. Political polarization, especially the polarization of two-party politics, has been one of the most striking features of American politics in the past three decades. The widening ideological divide and opposition between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party have expanded the tear in American society and led to the idling of American politics.
Around 28 percent of Americans named “political extremism or polarization” as one of the most important issues facing the country, according to a survey by the U.S. poll tracker FiveThirtyEight on June 14, 2022, adding that 64 percent said they felt political polarization is mostly driven by political and social elites.
According to a report by NBC NEWS on Oct. 23, 2022, 81 percent of Democrats said they believe the Republican Party’s agenda poses a threat that, if it isn’t stopped, will destroy America, while 79 percent of Republicans believe the same of the Democratic Party’s agenda. Seventy-one percent of voters said the country is headed in the wrong direction. “It seems like voters are no longer looking for a ‘Contract with America.’ They want a divorce,” said Democratic pollster Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates.
Political polarization and social rifts have made it difficult to reach a democratic consensus, and election farce and post-election chaos have become prominent features of U.S. politics. The polarization of party contention and vicious rivalry has led to the collapse of political trust and brought serious governance crisis to the United States, wrote Marc J. Hetherington, professor of Political Science at Vanderbilt University, and Thomas J. Rudolph, professor of Political Science at the University of Illinois, in their book, titled “Why Washington Won’t Work: Polarization, Political Trust, and the Governing Crisis.”
政府官员利用职务便利谋取私利。高层政治人物可以提前接触到许多敏感信息，并借以捞取金钱利益。《国会山报》网站2022年7月24日发表评论文章称，佩洛西夫妇的净资产超过1.14亿美元，且主要来自股票、期权等投资。2021年3月，保罗·佩洛西购买了价值超过500万美元的25000股微软股票期权。不到两周后，美国军方公布了与微软公司价值219亿美元的交易，该公司股票大幅上涨。2022年6月，国会预计对提升芯片生产行业的法案进行表决，该法案将分配520亿美元的补贴。保罗·佩洛西于是提前购买了英伟达公司高达500万美元的股票期权。南希·佩洛西担任众议院议长期间，佩洛西夫妇从其负责监管的大型科技公司的交易中获利约3000万美元。（注48）英国《每日邮报》网站2022年9月13日发表评论文章指出，在435名美国联邦众议员中，有183人在2019年至2021年期间通过自己或其直系亲属交易股票。至少有97人通过自己或配偶交易与他们在国会工作中直接相关的公司的股票、债券或其他金融资产。（注49）《华尔街日报》网站2022年10月11日发表的调查报道显示，包括商务部、财政部在内的多个美国政府机构的2600多名官员承认在进行股票投资时，恰处于相关公司游说他们所在部门以获得优惠政策时期。（注50）美联社2022年8月18日报道，宾夕法尼亚州前法官马克·恰瓦雷拉和迈克尔·科纳汉在接受了两座私营营利性青少年监狱的280万美元贿赂之后，关闭了县政府运营的公立青少年惩教所，将儿童送往营利性监狱。这一精心策划的计划被称为“儿童换金钱”。（注51）高层政治人物一边向选民开空头支票，同时却在利用职位便利捞取金钱利益。
Government officials take advantage of their positions for personal gain. High-level politicians can in advance get access to a lot of sensitive information that could allow them to make profits. The reported net assets of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, along with her husband Paul Pelosi, are worth more than 114 million U.S. dollars, and a majority of their wealth is derived from investments such as stocks and options, The Hill said in an opinion piece on July 24, 2022. In March 2021, Paul exercised options to purchase 25,000 Microsoft shares worth more than 5 million dollars. Less than two weeks later, the U.S. Army disclosed a 21.9 billion dollar deal with Microsoft. Shares of the company rose sharply after the deal was announced. In June 2022, Paul bought up to 5 million dollars in stock options from Nvidia, a leading semiconductor company. The purchase came as Congress was set to vote on legislation that would result in 52 billion dollars in subsidies allocated to elevate the chip-production industry. During Nancy Pelosi’s term as the house speaker, the Pelosis have made approximately 30 million dollars from trades involving big tech companies the former House speaker is responsible for regulating. Of the 435 House members, 183 traded stocks through themselves or their immediate family members from 2019 to 2021, Daily Mail said in an opinion piece on Sept. 13, 2022. It added that at least 97 bought or sold stocks, bonds, or other financial assets through themselves or their spouses that directly intersected with their congressional work. A Wall Street Journal investigation on Oct. 11, 2022, found that more than 2,600 officials at agencies from the Commerce Department to the Treasury Department disclosed stock investments in companies while those same companies were lobbying their agencies for favorable policies. In what came to be known as the kids-for-cash scandal, former Pennsylvania judges Mark Ciavarella and Michael Conahan shut down a county-run juvenile detention center and accepted 2.8 million dollars in illegal payments from two for-profit lockups, The Associated Press (AP) reported on Aug. 18, 2022. Ciavarella pushed a zero-tolerance policy that guaranteed large numbers of kids would be sent to the facilities, the report added. Many top U.S. politicians were making empty promises to voters while profiting financially from their positions.
民众对美国民主的信心持续走低。美国学者托马斯·戴伊、哈蒙·齐格勒和路易斯·舒伯特合著的《民主的反讽：美国精英政治是如何运作的》一书指出：“现在美国民众基本上不再相信政府是为大众利益服务的，大部分人都认为美国政治制度由少数大型利益集团操控，且往往是为了他们自己的利益而把大众抛在脑后。”（注52）“美国昆尼皮亚克大学民意调查”2022年8月31日发表调查报告指出，67%的美国人认为美国民主面临“崩溃风险”。（注53）美联社2022年10月19日报道，几十年来，美国全国范围内的两极分化日益加剧，人们对民主普遍感到绝望。只有9%的美国成年人认为民主正在“极好”或“非常好”地运作，而52%的人认为它运作不佳。（注54）美通社2022年11月4日报道，中期选举前的一项无党派民意调查显示，86%的选民表示美国民主面临“非常严重的威胁”。72%的选民认为美国民主不健康，64%的选民认为太多金钱介入政治，61%的选民认为美国政治腐败，58%的选民认为美国民主政治存在太多带有偏见或错误的信息。（注55）美国全国广播公司新闻网2022年11月9日发布的调查结果显示，72%的民主党选民、68%的共和党选民和70%的中间选民都认为民主受到了威胁。（注56）民众对美国民主的信心持续走低，折射出美式民主正在失去民意基础。
Public confidence in American democracy continues to decline. American scholars Thomas R. Dye, Harmon Zeigler and Louis Schubert pointed out in their book The Irony of Democracy: An Uncommon Introduction to American Politics that few Americans today still believe that government is run for the benefit of the people. Most see the political system as run by a few big interests for their own benefit, leaving the average person forgotten behind, the book added. Sixty-seven percent of Americans think the nation’s democracy is in danger of collapse, said a poll by The Quinnipiac University Poll on Aug. 31, 2022. AP said in a report on Oct. 19, 2022, that there is a general despair over democracy in America which comes after decades of increasing polarization nationwide. Just 9 percent of U.S. adults think democracy is working “extremely” or “very well,” while 52 percent say it’s not working well, it added. PR Newswire reported on Nov. 4, 2022, that a nonpartisan More Perfect poll before the midterm election showed that 86 percent of voters said the U.S. democracy faces very serious threats. Seventy-two percent of American voters rated the health of American democracy as poor; 64 percent said there is too much money in politics; 61 percent believed U.S. politics is corrupt; and 58 percent thought there is too much-biased information and misinformation in American democracy. According to a survey by NBC News on Nov. 9, 2022, 72 percent of Democratic voters, 68 percent of Republican voters and 70 percent of independents agreed that democracy was threatened. Public confidence in American democracy continues to decline, reflecting that American democracy is losing popular support.
