马克·阿莫代伊众议员在接受《政治》杂志采访时表示，他原本在内华达州的安全共和党选区——该选区从未选出过民主党人——今年因共和党候选人而“存在风险”。
Rep. Mark Amodei told POLITICO in an interview that his once safely red Nevada district, which has never elected a Democrat, is “at risk” this year because of the GOP candidate.
由梅雷迪思·李·希尔撰文 即将退休的内华达州共和党众议员马克·阿莫代伊表示，他不会投票支持特朗普背书的共和党候选人，该候选人正竞争接替他的席位，原因是该候选人涉及一系列盗取荣誉及其他指控——并警告称，曾经由特朗普以14个百分点优势赢得的安全共和党席位，在选举日存在转向蓝色（即被民主党夺取）的风险。
By Meredith Lee Hill Retiring Nevada Republican Rep. Mark Amodei said he won’t vote for the Trump-endorsed GOP candidate vying to replace him amid a string of stolen valor and other accusations — and warned that the once-safe Republican seat President Donald Trump won by 14 points is at risk of flipping blue on Election Day.
阿莫代伊在周六的采访中表示，他将“绝对不会”投票支持内华达州第二选区的商业人士大卫·弗利波。“我认为这个席位存在风险，”他补充道，并引用了针对弗利波的一系列盗取荣誉和财务指控。
Amodei said in an interview Saturday he would "absolutely not” vote for businessperson David Flippo in Nevada’s 2nd District. “I think the seat’s at risk,” he added, citing a string of stolen valor and financial allegations against Flippo.
“你说，好吧，总统背书了他，”阿莫代伊接着说道。“这就像，不管是谁在 advising 总统，‘嘿，这对你来说是个可以公开表态的好地方’，给了他糟糕的建议。审查过程——引号内的——几乎肯定是不存在的。”阿莫代伊特别指出，针对弗利波的一系列指控使其失去资格，据称他撒谎关于自己的军役经历，并且未能及时提交财务披露文件。
“You say, well, the president endorsed him,” Amodei added. “It's like, well whoever was advising the president on, ‘Hey, this would be a good place for you to go ahead and weigh in,’ gave him awful advice. The vetting process — quote unquote — must have been nearly non-existent.”Amodei specifically cited a series of allegations against Flippo as disqualifying, for reportedly lying about his military service and also failing to file financial disclosures on time.
“这只是一件接着一件事。盗取荣誉的指控——所有这些。但你就这样坐在这里想，‘到底怎么回事？’”阿莫代伊说。弗利波曾表示，他在竞选材料中对自己军役经历的明显夸大是其员工和他人犯下的错误。尽管如此，根据两位知情人士的透露，共和党官员一直在权衡特朗普是否应该前往该地区为弗利波助力，以在选举日前提升其支持度。该选区从未被民主党代表过。
“It's just one thing after another. The stolen valor accusations — all that. But you're just sitting here going, ‘What the heck?’”Amodei said. Flippo has said apparent exaggerations about his military service on campaign materials were mistakes by his staff and others. Still, GOP officials have been weighing whether Trump should campaign in the region to help boost Flippo before Election Day, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. The district has never been represented by a Democrat.
阿莫代伊表示，他计划在接下来的几天里提前投票，并且“正在认真考虑”投给独立候选人。
Amodei said he plans to vote early in the coming days and “is looking seriously” at casting his ballot for the independent candidate.
在形势日益恶化的背景下，全国共和党人对像弗利波这样的共和党人在曾经稳固的红色选区保住席位越来越感到担忧。特朗普在2024年赢得了涵盖雷诺及周边农村县的北内华达州选区，胜出幅度达到双位数，而阿莫代伊已连续15年占据该席位。
Amid the deteriorating landscape, national Republicans are increasingly wary about Republicans like Flippo holding onto seats in once-safe red districts. Trump won the Northern Nevada seat that encompasses Reno and nearby rural counties by double digits in 2024 and Amodei has held it for 15 years.
从表面上看，民主党在这里本不该有什么作为。全国共和党人仍然对保住该席位持乐观态度，认为该选区比他们更担心的其他红色选区更安全。但共和党人看到，民主党人特雷莎·贝尼特兹-汤普森（曾任内华达州议会多数党领袖）的参与使竞争变得比预期更为激烈。
On paper, Democrats should have no business playing there. And, national Republicans are still bullish on their chances of holding onto the seat, arguing it’s safer than other red districts they’re more worried about. But Republicans have watched Democrat Teresa Benitez-Thompson, a former Nevada Assembly majority leader, make the race much tighter than comfortable.
有限的大选民调显示，弗利波要么领先，要么落后几个百分点。特朗普支持的MAGA Inc.超级政治行动委员会最近几天刚刚向该选区投入首笔资金，旨在提升弗利波的竞选势头——他已自掏腰包资助了竞选活动的大部分。
Limited general election polls have Flippo either up or trailing by several points. The Trump-aligned MAGA Inc. super PAC just dropped its first spending into the district in recent days, looking to boost Flippo who has self-funded a large part of his campaign.
内华达州共和党人——曾对翻转拉斯维加斯地区的第一选区和第三选区持乐观态度——如今正越来越关注阿莫代伊所代表的北内华达州选区。全国农村州正面临的经济逆风已经冲击了内华达州所谓的“牧场县”，而雷诺地区的人口结构变化近年来也有利于民主党。
Nevada Republicans — once bullish about flipping the Las Vegas-area 1st and 3rd Districts — are now paying increasing attention to Amodei’s Northern Nevada district. The economic headwinds that have hit farm states across the country have slammed Nevada’s so-called cattle counties, and demographic change in Reno has favored Democrats in recent years.
阿莫代伊拒绝背书弗利波，认为他完全不是该选区的合适人选。阿莫代伊说：“弗利波是‘空降’到选区的人，‘宣布他们的意图，几小时内就从拉斯维加斯的另一个选区撤出’——就在我说‘嘿，我认为现在是我退休的时候了’之后。”阿莫代伊还质疑弗利波在提交财务披露文件上的延迟。
Amodei, who has refused to endorse Flippo, views him as entirely the wrong candidate for the district. Flippo is “somebody who air drops into the district,” Amodei said, “announces their intent, pulls out of another district in Las Vegas, within hours of when I said, ‘Hey, I think the time is right for me to retire.’”Amodei also questioned Flippo’s delays in filing his financial disclosures.
“就我而言，这种对流程的愤世嫉俗态度在‘目的正当化手段’方面令人震惊，”阿莫代伊补充道。
“It's the cynical attitude towards the process to me that has just been staggering in terms of the end justifies the means,” Amodei added.
阿莫代伊表示，他相信共和党人仍有机会保住众议院多数席位，他已经告诉议长迈克·约翰逊，他“诚挚”希望这位来自路易斯安那州的共和党人能够继续担任下一届国会的议长。
Amodei said he believes Republicans still have a shot at holding onto their House majority, and he’s told Speaker Mike Johnson he “sincerely” wants the Louisiana Republican to stay on as speaker next Congress.
但阿莫代伊警告称，与一年前共和党人“感觉相当不错，顺风顺水”时相比，众议院共和党人的整体形势如今变得更加严峻。“一切都没了，”他说，并补充道：“目前全国的氛围并不温暖。”“根本没有‘是啊，我宁愿是我们而不是他们’这种感觉，”阿莫代伊说。“就像每个人都得系好下巴带，准备好在第四节奋力拼搏。”
But Amodei warned the larger landscape for House Republicans has turned darker, compared to a year ago when Republicans “were feeling pretty good, and the winds were at our back.”“It’s gone,” he said, adding “the mood of the country right now does not feel warm.”“There's absolutely no, ‘Yeah, I'd rather be us than them,’” Amodei said. “It's like everybody better button up their chin strap and be ready to play through the fourth quarter.”