陷入胶着竞选的共和党人已确定了一套应对唐纳德·特朗普总统的辩论策略，随着他在选民中的支持率下滑：在政治需要时与其政策保持距离，但绝不直接挑战他本人。
Republicans in tight races have settled on a debate-stage formula for dealing with President Donald Trump as his popularity with the voting public wanes: Distance themselves from his policies when the politics demand it, but never take on the man himself.
10月1日发布的一项美联社-NORC民调显示，特朗普的支持率为31%，为其两个任期以来的最低点，且发现69%的美国人认为伊朗战争不值得打。这让处于激烈竞争中的共和党人不得不在疏远特朗普基本盘和失去他们所需的温和摇摆选民之间走钢丝。
An AP-NORC poll released Oct. 1 put Trump’s approval rating at 31%, the lowest of either of his terms, and found that 69% of Americans do not think the Iran war has been worth fighting. That leaves Republicans in competitive races walking a fine line between alienating Trump’s base and losing the moderate swing voters they need.
本周在缅因州、佐治亚州、密歇根州和爱荷华州的参议院和州长辩论中，共和党候选人强调了他们在认为总统损害本州利益时愿意为其顶住压力的意愿，特别是在伊朗战争和对加拿大关税问题上。
In Senate and gubernatorial debates this week in Maine, Georgia, Michigan and Iowa, GOP candidates emphasized their willingness to push back on the president when they believe he is hurting their states, especially on the Iran war and tariffs on Canada.
但即使他们在辩论舞台上与总统划清界限，他们也大多避免与特朗普直接决裂，因为他们估计仍需要他的背书力量来在即将到来的选举中生存下来。
But even as they separated themselves from the president on the debate stage, they largely avoided a direct break with Trump, calculating that they still need the power of his endorsement to survive the upcoming election.
缅因州 在缅因州，共和党参议员苏珊·柯林斯利用周二与民主党挑战者特洛伊·杰克逊的辩论，强调了她九次投票反对伊朗战争的记录。她说这场冲突“考虑不周”，并正在推高燃油价格。
Maine In Maine, Republican Sen. Susan Collins used Tuesday’s debate against Democratic challenger Troy Jackson, to highlight her nine votes against the Iran war. She said the conflict “is not well thought out” and is driving up fuel prices.
这位连任五届的现任议员还反驳了杰克逊关于她去年95%时间与总统投票一致的说法，称该数字仅统计了任期前七个月的情况。她说，若统计2025年全年，这一比例降至72%。
The five-term incumbent also rebutted Jackson’s claim that she voted with the president 95% of the time last year, saying the figure looks at the first seven months of the term. When looking at the entirety of 2025, the number drops to 72%, she said.
当主持人问柯林斯如果特朗普来缅因州助选（总统曾暗示这一可能），她是否会站在他身边时，柯林斯拒绝回答。即使主持人逼她非要回答是或否，她也推脱了。“我想说的是，他不会来缅因州，”她说。
When the moderator asked Collins if she would stand next to Trump if he campaigned in Maine — a prospect the president has floated— Collins would not say. She held off even as the moderator pushed her to answer yes or no. “I would say that he is not coming to Maine,” she said.
佐治亚州 在周二佐治亚州州长辩论中，共和党提名人里克·杰克逊表示，他将“对抗任何人”以保护佐治亚州民，并补充说他“不欠任何人任何东西”。此前，他的民主党对手、前亚特兰大市长基莎·兰斯·博托姆斯多次批评他在7月的言论，即如果当选，他将成为特朗普“最喜爱的州长”。
Georgia In Georgia’s gubernatorial debate Tuesday, Republican nominee Rick Jackson said he would “stand up to anybody” to protect Georgians, adding that he does not “owe anybody anything.”His comments came after his Democratic foe, Keisha Lance Bottoms, repeatedly criticized him for his July remark that he will be Trump’s “favorite governor,” if elected.
这一攻击路线已成为本选举季的常态。在一场又一场辩论中，民主党提名人不断追问共和党对手关于伊朗战争和特朗普关税的立场，即使主持人没有提问。
That line of attack has become a staple this election season. In debate after debate, Democratic nominees have pressed their Republican opponents on the Iran war and Trump’s tariffs, even when the moderators have not.
在周四佐治亚州参议员辩论中，民主党参议员乔恩·奥索夫开场便就关税问题猛攻其共和党挑战者、众议员迈克·柯林斯。
In Georgia’s Senate debate Thursday, Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff went after his Republican challenger, Rep. Mike Collins, on tariffs early on.
“这些关税正在摧毁我们的州，”奥索夫说。“我想听听这位众议员解释，为什么他一次又一次、一次又一次地投票支持这些关税。”奥索夫在整场辩论中多次逼问柯林斯就关税问题作出回应。
“These tariffs are crushing our state,” Ossoff said. “I’d like to hear the congressman explain why he voted for them over and over and over again.”Ossoff pressed Collins to answer for the tariffs multiple times throughout the debate.
“我们知道这些关税会带来什么后果，但他依然投票支持，因为无论唐纳德·特朗普说什么，迈克·柯林斯都照做，”奥索夫在逼迫柯林斯指出一次他投过反对特朗普的票之前说道。
“We knew what the consequences of these tariffs would be, and still, he voted for them, because whatever Donald Trump says, Mike Collins does,” Ossoff said before prodding Collins to identify a time he voted against Trump.
密歇根州 在密歇根州，共和党州长提名人、众议员约翰·詹姆斯采取了与杰克逊类似的立场，表示他曾“多次”对抗总统，包括最近呼吁特朗普结束伊朗战争。“我可以同意总统，但不必崇拜他，”詹姆斯说。“我可以不同意，但不必攻击他，我永远把密歇根州放在第一位。”但在关税问题上，詹姆斯站在了特朗普一边。当被问及是否支持对密歇根州最大贸易伙伴加拿大征收关税时，他回答“是”。他辩称，该州正在向北方邻国流失制造业和商业服务岗位。但他批评政府处理谈判的方式。
Michigan In Michigan, Rep. John James, the Republican gubernatorial nominee, toed a similar line as Jackson, saying he has stood up to the president “many times,” including in his recent call for Trump to end the Iran war“I can agree with the president without worshipping him,” James said. “I can disagree without attacking him, and I always put Michigan first.”On tariffs, however, James sided with Trump. Asked whether he supports tariffs on Canada, Michigan’s largest trading partner, he answered “yes.”He argued the state is losing manufacturing and business-services jobs to its northern neighbor. But he faulted the administration’s handling of the negotiations.
詹姆斯表示：“我实际上已经批评了政府，并专门与贸易大使进行了交谈，指出我们必须重返谈判桌，停止像孩子一样行事，谈判达成一个互惠、公平且互利的安排，以确保我们能把工作岗位带回来，保护我们的产业。”
“I’ve actually called out the administration and specifically talked with the trade ambassador, saying that we must get back to the table, stop acting like children and negotiate a reciprocal, fair and mutually beneficial arrangement to make sure that we can bring our jobs back and protect our industry,” James said.
该州共和党参议员提名人、前众议员迈克·罗杰斯在周四的辩论中采取了不同的做法。他说美国“应该取消”对加拿大的关税，称这些关税“过高且对美国人无益”。
Former Rep. Mike Rogers, the state GOP’s Senate nominee, took a different approach in Thursday’s debate. He said the U.S. “ought to get rid of” the tariffs on Canada, which he called “too high and not helpful” to Americans.
罗杰斯表示：“我希望看到达成协议，”这呼应了他周三发布的呼吁结束关税的广告。“我这周实际上给白宫打过电话，并与商务部长讨论了达成协议的事宜。”辩论结束后，罗杰斯回避了MS NOW关于如果特朗普访问密歇根州他是否会与特朗普一起竞选的问题。他没有回答是否会与总统同台，而是表示欢迎特朗普与从特朗普关税中获益的农民一起竞选。罗杰斯说：“我希望他能和那些人交谈，让他们振奋起来。”爱荷华州的共和党提名人也采取了不同的做法。
“I would like to see the deal made,” said Rogers, echoing the ad he released Wednesday calling for an end to the tariffs. “I have actually called the White House this week, and talked to the Secretary of Commerce about getting the deal done.”After the debate, Rogers dodged MS NOW’s question about whether he would campaign with Trump if he were to visit Michigan. He did not answer if he would appear with the president, but instead said he would welcome Trump to campaign with farmers who have reaped benefits from Trump’s tariffs. “I’d love to have him talk to those people and get them fired up,” Rogers said. ’s Republican nominees also took diverging approaches.
作为共和党参议员提名人的众议员阿什利·欣森曾在众议院七次投票反对限制伊朗战争。在周三的辩论中，她再次呼吁特朗普让战争“立即并成功地结束”。她还表示，在对爱荷华州“错误”的问题上，她毫不介意对特朗普施加压力。
Rep. Ashley Hinson, the Republican Senate nominee, has voted seven times in the House against curtailing the Iran war. In Wednesday’s debate, she again called on Trump to bring the war to an“immediate and successful end.”She also said she has no problem pushing back against Trump on issues that are “wrong for” Iowa.
她为自己在战争问题上的投票进行了辩护，理由是美国必须确保伊朗不获得核武器，这也是特朗普为战争辩护所用的相同理由。
She defended her votes on the war by arguing the U.S. has to ensure Iran does not get a nuclear weapon, which is the same rationale Trump used to justify the war.
欣森说：“我们确实需要让它立即并成功地结束，对我来说，这意味着不允许他们拥有核武器，并确保我们与该地区的盟友合作并保护他们。”
“We do need to bring it to an immediate and successful end, and to me, that means not allowing them to have a nuclear weapon and making sure that we’re working with and protecting our allies in the region,” Hinson said.
共和党州长候选人扎克·拉恩采取了另一种方式：他支持了本届政府，但从未直呼总统的名字。周二举行的州长辩论几乎完全聚焦于州内事务，不过拉恩强调自己能够接触到政府官员，并声称那些源自白宫的政策成果也应归功于他，其中包括周一发布的旨在降低柴油价格的行政命令——他声称这项命令源于今年9月与副总统JD·范斯的一次私人谈话。
Zach Lahn, the Republican nominee for governor, went another way: He embraced the administration without once mentioning the president by name. Tuesday’s gubernatorial debate stayed almost exclusively on state issues, though Lahn touted his access to administration officials and took credit for policies emanating from the White House, including Monday’s executive order aimed at lowering the price of diesel citing a private conversation with Vice President JD Vance in September. “Vice President JD Vance, who I’d never met before, pulled me to the back and he asked me a question about how we can give farmers relief at a time like this,” Lahn said.
拉恩说：“我之前从未见过副总统JD·范斯，但他把我拉到一旁，问我如何能在当前这种时候为农民提供救济。我告诉他：我们可以立即采取的一项措施，就是允许在公路上行驶的车辆使用红色染料柴油……从那天起，我就开始接到关于此事的电话，两周后，我们得知一项行政命令即将签署。”
“And I said to him: One thing we can do immediately would be to allow the use of red dye diesel for on road vehicles … that day, I started getting calls about this, and two weeks later, we found out an executive order is going to be signed.”The post‘I can agree with the president without worshipping him’: Inside the GOP’s debate-stage Trump dance MS NOW