随着美国和伊朗继续通过调解人对话以结束战争，白宫正在降低对即将取得突破的预期。
As the US and Iran continue to speak via mediators in a bid to end the war, the White House is tempering any expectations that a breakthrough might be near.
特朗普昨天下午在白宫前对记者重申，他认为伊朗“处境非常糟糕”，但他不确定他们是否“已经投降”。
Speaking to reporters in front of the White House yesterday afternoon, Trump reiterated that he believes Iran is “doing very poorly,” though he said he wasn’t sure whether they’d “give up yet.”
一些美国官员长期以来一直承认，这场冲突没有明确或干净的出路，而这一现实已成为共和党人在中期选举前面临的一个重大问题，因为选民正关注物价。
Some US officials have long conceded that there’s no clear — or clean — way out of the conflict, and that reality has emerged as a major issue for Republicans ahead of the midterms as voters focus on prices.
一位接近白宫的人士在谈到本周会谈的预期时表示：“标准被定得很高。
“The bar is being raised very high,” said one person close to the White House regarding expectations of this week’s talks.
我说的高是指我们在玩矮人舞，只是希望能在不发生重大灾难的情况下从下面走过去。”——谢尔比·塔尔科特
“And by high, I mean we’re playing the limbo and just hoping we can walk under it without any major disasters.”— Shelby Talcott