周四，在佐治亚州紧张的辩论舞台上，民主党参议员乔恩·奥索夫指责他的对手是个偏执狂：“你雇佣了第三帝国的一半人。”
On a tense debate stage in Georgia on Thursday, Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff branded his opponent a bigot: "You've hired half the Third Reich.”
在密歇根州，民主党候选人阿卜杜勒·埃尔-赛耶德将前众议员迈克·罗杰斯描述为特朗普议程的顺从者，称他“软弱、懦弱，除非他的民调数字下降，否则不会站出来”。
In Michigan, Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed dismissed former Rep. Mike Rogers as a yes-man for the Trump agenda who is “weak, cowardly, won’t stand up until his poll numbers drop.”
而在缅因州，民主党候选人特罗伊·杰克逊谴责参议员苏珊·柯林斯是战争获利者：“柯林斯参议员及其丈夫正从这场战争中赚取更多利润，还有许多人也在这样做。”这三场备受关注的参议院竞赛中的共和党候选人各自进行了反驳——试图将奥索夫描绘成信托基金子女，将埃尔-赛耶德描述为与恐怖网络有家族联系的人，并称杰克逊在堕胎权问题上立场不一致。但正是民主党人的这些尖锐言论，像他们所预期的病毒式时刻一样，在社交媒体上反复传播。
And in Maine, Democratic nominee Troy Jackson denounced Sen. Susan Collins as a war profiteer: “Senator Collins and her husband are making money—more—off this war, and so are a whole bunch of other people.”The trio of Republicans in those marquee Senate races had their own rejoinders—attempting to paint Ossoff as a trust-fund kid, El-Sayed as having family ties to terrorist networks, and Jackson as being inconsistent on abortion rights. But it was the Democrats’ jabs that were ricocheting across social media like the viral moments that they were intended to be.
正是这种动态揭示了，周四晚上这三场高调辩论之所以成为本选举季的异常现象。在众多州和地方选举中，候选人正在放弃面对面辩论实际政策的神圣传统。
It’s that dynamic that reveals why the Thursday night trifecta of high-profile debates was an anomaly this election season. In dozens of races up and down the ballot, candidates are forgoing the hallowed tradition of facing their opponent in person to debate actual policy.
在超过一半的州长和参议院选举中，两大党候选人预计不会在选举日前参加任何辩论。即使在被视为竞争激烈的选举中，这一趋势也依然存在。非党派的《Cook Political Report》将五场州长选评为真正的摇摆州。其中，佐治亚州、内华达州和俄亥俄州不太可能举行辩论。同样，到目前为止，两场最激烈的参议院竞赛——德克萨斯州和俄亥俄州——也不太可能举行辩论。
In more than half of the races for Governor and Senate, the two major-party candidates are not expected to participate in any debates before Election Day. The trend holds even in races viewed as competitive. The non-partisan Cook Political Report rates five races for Governor as true toss-ups. Three—Georgia, Nevada, and Ohio—are not likely to hold a debate. The same is true so far for two of the hardest-fought Senate races—Texas and Ohio.
战略家们解释这种演变是对选民信息消费方式的回应。他们说，很少有选民自己观看辩论。地方记者提供的更深入的辩论报道，很少能像党派媒体剪辑和放大的失误和陷阱那样触及更多选民。
Strategists explain the evolution as a response to how voters are consuming information. They say few voters watch the debates themselves. The more in-depth coverage of a debate offered by local journalists rarely reaches as many voters as the gaffes and gotchas from the event that are clipped and amplified by partisan media.
政界有个老生常谈的说法：辩论中其实没有真正的赢家，只有输家。参议员达琳·格雷厄姆就用惨痛的教训印证了这一点。她被任命接替已故哥哥的剩余任期，之后又竞选完整任期。然而在8月份的首次辩论中，她表现得一塌糊涂。当时她坦言道：“我就直说了吧，我对国家安全方面的了解实在有限。”考虑到林赛·格雷厄姆参议员的政治声誉很大程度上建立在其对美国外交政策的贡献之上，在场观众无不为之震惊。
It’s a cliche in the political class that no one really wins a debate, it’s just that someone loses. Sen. Darlene Graham learned that last lesson the hard way. After being appointed to fill the balance of her late brother’s term, her bid for a full term left her stumbling in August through her first debate showing: “I’m just going to be honest here,” she said. “I’m not that informed on national security.”The audience gasped in shock given how much Sen. Lindsey Graham’s legacy was tied to his shaping of U.S. foreign policy.
在得克萨斯州，特朗普力促帕克斯顿参加辩论。关于是否该举行辩论的争论，得克萨斯州堪称最为激烈——民主党人詹姆斯·塔拉里科与共和党人肯·帕克斯顿正在争夺该州的参议院席位。数月来，塔拉里科一直试图吸引帕克斯顿上台辩论，甚至提议在偏共和党立场的福克斯新闻频道进行。但帕克斯顿始终予以拒绝。
In Texas, Trump Prods Paxton to Debate Nowhere has the debate over whether to debate been more tortured than in Texas, where Democrat James Talarico and Republican Ken Paxton are vying for a Senate seat. Talarico has been trying to bait Paxton to the stage for months, going so far as to suggest they do it on GOP-friendly Fox News. Paxton has so far refused.
上周，特朗普介入这场争论，使得局面愈发尴尬。当时塔拉里科已多日未出现在竞选活动中——其竞选团队称他正在康复流感。特朗普在圣安东尼奥的集会上毫不留情地嘲讽这位民主党人，暗示他之所以缺席是因为自己是个秘密素食主义者，身体无法适应竞选活动中提供的烧烤大餐。
Which made things all the more awkward last week when Trump inserted himself in the discussion. As Talarico had been missing from the trail for days—his campaign said he was recovering from the flu—Trump mercilessly mocked the Democrat at a San Antonio rally, suggesting he was absent from the trail because he is a secret vegan whose body is rejecting the barbecue he’s been eating at photo-ops.
离开得克萨斯州时，总统进一步强化了这一言论，呼吁帕克斯顿与塔拉里科展开辩论，好让选民们看看谁的身体状况能胜任这一工作。
The President then punched up the messaging on his way out of Texas, calling on Paxton and Talarico to get together for a debate to show voters who was physically up to the job.
“各位，据我所知，正在竞选得克萨斯州联邦参议员的詹姆斯·塔拉怪咖已经‘失踪’了！”周三晚间，特朗普在其社交媒体平台上写道，“他应立即登上辩论台，与早已做好准备、意愿强烈且身体条件合格的肯·帕克斯顿一决高下。”
“Ladies and Gentlemen, upon information and belief, James TalaFREAKo, who is running for the United States Senate in Texas, is MISSING IN ACTION!”Trump wrote Wednesday night on his social media platform. “He should immediately report to a Debate Stage against Ken Paxton, who is ready, willing, and able.”
塔拉里科迅速抓住这个良机回应道：“特朗普总统刚刚表示肯·帕克斯顿应该参加辩论。我完全赞同。现在轮到你行动了，肯。” 辩论真的有意义吗？
Talarico jumped at the clear opening: “President Trump just said Ken Paxton should debate. I agree,” Talarico said on social media. “Ball’s in your court, Ken.”Do debates matter?
舞台辩论长期以来被视为决定选举胜负的关键时刻——在这一刻，候选人无法依赖旋转医生或提词器，必须展现他们真实的面貌。
On-stage debates have long been treated as race-defining moments—the event in which the candidates, unable to lean on spin doctors or teleprompters, show who they really are.
根据ABC新闻最近的一项分析，今年36场州长选举中，有21场，即58%，不会出现两大党候选人之间的辩论。同一份ABC新闻分析还指出，参议院选举中有60%的可能性将在没有辩论的情况下进入选举日。
Of this year’s 36 races for governor, 21 races, or 58%, won’t see a debate between the two major-party candidates, according to a recent ABC News analysis. The same ABC News analysis pegs the share of Senate races likely to reach Election Day without a debate at 60%.
布鲁金斯学会已经追踪这一趋势长达二十五年。2000年，五场最激烈的参议院选举共进行了17场辩论。到2018年，这一数字已降至个位数。
The Brookings Institution has been tracking this trend for a quarter century. In 2000, the top five most competitive Senate races had a combined 17 debates. That number hit single digits in 2018.
一些政治专业人士也开始质疑辩论到底有多大作用，尤其是在竞争最激烈的选举中，选民正被广告轰炸。例如，在激烈的德克萨斯州参议院选举中，选民们已经看到超过4.25亿美元的政治广告，且数字仍在上升。正如一位精明的广告买家所指出的，这已经超过《权力的游戏》最终季制作成本的四倍以上。
Some political pros also question how much debates even matter, particularly in the most hard-fought races where voters are being bombarded with ads. In the fierce Texas Senate race, for instance, voters there have already seen more than $425 million in political ads and counting. Or, as one savvy ad buyer noted, more than four times the cost of the final season of Game of Thrones.
两年前，唐纳德·特朗普在未与任何 fellow Republican 进行辩论的情况下，第三次成为总统候选人。当时他的论点是，他在民意调查中已经遥遥领先，没有必要提升其他落后候选人的知名度。
Two years ago, Donald Trump became the presidential nominee for a third time without ever debating any of his fellow Republicans. His argument then was that he was so far ahead in the polls, there was no point in elevating the also-rans.
类似的论点如今也在阿拉巴马州被提出。参议员汤米·图伯维尔正在竞选州长，他拒绝与前参议员道格·琼斯进行辩论，称那场辩论“将只是关于意见分歧”，而非实际治理。共和党人认为他们在该选举中已经基本确保胜利，让琼斯同上台辩论只会削弱图伯维尔的形象。
A similar argument is being made this cycle in Alabama. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who is running for Governor, has refused to debate former Sen. Doug Jones, saying the evening would be “about differences of opinion” and not actually governing. Republicans argue they’re already all-but-guaranteed a win in the race and putting Jones on the same stage would diminish Tuberville.
还有一些人坚称自己是基于原则才拒绝参加辩论。艾米·阿克顿正在激烈角逐，力争成为自2011年以来俄亥俄州首位民主党籍州长，但她拒绝与共和党候选人维韦克·拉马斯瓦米进行辩论。阿克顿的竞选团队表示，他们不愿为拉马斯瓦米提供“展示平台”。用阿克顿自己的话说，她不想与“惯于撒谎的人”辩论。本次中期选举中众多候选人缺席辩论的现象，或许预示着2028年的选举走向——届时共和党和民主党都将围绕总统提名权展开激烈且喧嚣的争夺。
And then there’s those who insist they are rejecting a debate on principle. Amy Acton, who is in a tight race to become Ohio’s first Democratic Governor since 2011, has refused to debate the Republican nominee, Vivek Ramaswamy. Acton’s campaign says it refuses to “platform” Ramaswamy. Or as Acton put it recently: She doesn’t want to debate “a chronic liar.”The absenteeism from the debate stage in the midterms may be a harbinger of what’s to come in 2028—which is shaping up to be dominated by two crowded and noisy fights for the Republican and Democratic presidential nominations.
就在2024年，那些支持率落后的共和党候选人还争相争取登上主流辩论舞台，生怕只能参加那些常被比作“儿童专用餐桌”的次级辩论环节。展望未来，候选人们或许会重新考量这一策略：他们可能会避开电视辩论中那些难以应对的尖锐提问，转而追求更容易掌控的、能引发网络热议的瞬间以及讨好核心选民的表演性举动。
As recently as 2024, trailing Republican candidates fought to claw their way on the main debate stage, lest they end up seated in undercard debates that were often unfavorably compared to a holiday kids’ table. Looking ahead, candidates may rethink that strategy, sidestepping the potentially tough questioning of televised debates in favor of viral moments and base-serving showmanship that they can better control.