乔，当你在国会任职时，我们实现了联邦预算平衡。后来发生了什么改变了这一局面？—— 罗伯特·R.，北卡罗来纳州赫特福德罗伯特，我在国会任职期间，我们连续四年实现了预算平衡。这是一百年来首次，也是唯一一次出现这种情况。当我于2001年9月离开国会时，华盛顿正享有1550亿美元的预算盈余。我们是如何做到的？我们做出了艰难抉择，只为联邦政府负担得起的项目和武器系统买单。
Joe, when you were in Congress we had a balanced physical budget. What happened that changed that? — Robert R., Hertford, N.C. Robert, When I was in Congress, we balanced the budget four years in a row. That was the first and only time that happened in 100 years. When I left Congress in September 2001, Washington was running a $155 billion surplus. How did we do it? We made tough choices and only paid for programs and weapons systems that the federal government could afford.
“9·11”袭击发生后，乔治·W·布什和共和党通过在五角大楼和国土安全方面追加数十亿开支作出回应。虽然这在一定程度上是合理的，但它却成了在随后几年里让臃肿的国防预算激增的借口。
After the 9/11 attacks, George W. Bush and Republicans responded by spending billions more at the Pentagon and protecting the homeland. While that was rational to a degree, it became an excuse to allow bloated defense budgets to explode over the coming years.
遗憾的是，布什领导下的共和党还联手民主党增加福利和国内开支，并提高每个官僚部门的拨款。
Unfortunately, Bush Republicans also joined Democrats to increase entitlement and domestic spending, and hike up funding for every bureaucratic department.
到他卸任时，布什已将国家债务翻了一番，从5.6万亿美元增至11.5万亿美元。贝拉克·奥巴马政府通过持续赤字又增加了数万亿美元，使总额达到19.5万亿美元。
By the end of his presidency, Bush had doubled the national debt, from $5.6 trillion to $11.5 trillion. Barack Obama’s administration added trillions more through sustained deficits, bringing the total to $19.5 trillion.
但没有哪位总统像唐纳德·J·特朗普那样制造了更大规模的赤字、让债务增幅更大。这颇具讽刺意味，因为候选人特朗普曾承诺要平衡预算、偿还联邦债务。和他大多数竞选承诺一样，这被证明是谎言。
But no president has run larger deficits and increased the debt more than Donald J. Trump. This is rich because candidate Trump ran promising to balance the budget and to pay down the federal debt. Like most of his other campaign pledges, that proved to be a lie.
华盛顿一直不愿做出艰难抉择。除非国会和总统在所有领域都鼓起勇气这么做，否则我们将继续走在通往财政毁灭的道路上。
Washington has been unwilling to make tough choices. Until Congress and the president find the courage to do so in all areas, we will remain on the road to financial ruin.
扭转这场危机的时间所剩无几，我们只能寄希望于下一届国会和总统认真对待拯救国家的任务。
Time is running out fast to turn around this crisis, and we can only hope that the next Congress and president get serious about saving our country.
我是一位长期的节目观众（你们已成为我早晨生活的重要组成部分！），非常感激所有优秀撰稿人的付出，现在很高兴能成为 MS NOW 会员并收到你们的通讯。每当提到战争罪行时，我都感到非常沮丧——尤其是普京，现在还有特朗普/黑格塞斯以及许多其他人。这些残暴的杀人犯当中，有谁曾被起诉过？问责在哪里？我特别担忧乌克兰人民的命运，也为那所伊朗女子学校感到心碎，那里本应有人被追责。
I am a longtime show watcher (you all have become a big part of my morning!) and appreciate all of your excellent contributors, and now I am happy to be a MS NOW Member and receiving your newsletter. I get so frustrated when war crimes are mentioned — Putin, most of all, and now Trump/Hegseth and so many others. Do any of these brutal killers ever get charged? Where is the accountability? I especially worry about the people of Ukraine and [am] heartbroken about the Iranian girls’ school where there should be charges.
谢谢。—— 苏茜·C.，伊利诺伊州巴塔维亚苏茜，数百万美国人对全球战区正在发生的野蛮行径感到同样失望。在普京对乌克兰发动长达四年多的血腥战争后，我们对他不抱任何期待。我们也对政府对伊朗女子学校发动的冷酷袭击深感担忧——以及其拒绝为本可避免的悲剧道歉。
Thank you. — Suzy C., Batavia, Ill. Suzy, Millions of Americans share your dismay over the savagery unfolding in war zones around the globe. We expect no better from Vladimir Putin after more than four years of his bloody war on Ukraine. We are also concerned about the administration’s callous attack on the Iranian girls’ school — and its refusal to even apologize for a tragedy that could have been avoided.
美国需要一种既强有力、又能维护我们在全球利益，同时仍符合美国价值观的外交政策。唐纳德·特朗普及其国防部长释放了一种外交政策，这与该国历来宣称所信奉的一切背道而驰。皮特·黑格塞斯必须下台。
America needs a foreign policy that is strong and protects our interests around the world, but also remains consistent with American values. Donald Trump and his defense secretary have unleashed a foreign policy that runs counter to everything this country has traditionally said it believes in. Pete Hegseth needs to go.
如果民主党在今秋控制众议院和/或参议院，我担心他们面临的任务过于艰巨，只能取得微乎其微的进展（尤其是特朗普仍在任的情况下），难以让我们摆脱当前困境，随后还会因未能兑现变革授权而遭指责。民主党该如何应对这种局面，才能让公众在 2028 年将总统大位托付给他们？—— 卡罗琳·G.，印第安纳州布卢明顿民主党人需要专注于他们降低美国工薪阶层生活成本的竞选承诺。
If the Democrats take control of the House and/or the Senate this fall, I am worried that they will have such a huge task ahead of them that they will only be able to make minimal progress (especially with Trump still in office) on digging us out of our current situation and will then get blamed for not delivering on a mandate for change. How can the Democrats approach such a situation so the public will trust them with the presidency in 2028? — Caroline G., Bloomington, Ind. Democrats need to remain focused on their campaign promises to lower the cost of living for working Americans.
他们可以先收回国会对关税的权力，然后援引《战争权力法》限制总统发动对伊朗及全球无休止战争的能力。仅这两项就能在很大程度上降低超市和加油站的通胀。
They can start by reclaiming Congress’ power over tariffs and then invoking the War Powers Act to limit the president’s ability to launch endless wars with Iran and around the world. Just those two items would go a long way toward reducing inflation at the grocery store and the gas pump.
他们还应把可负担住房放在优先位置，并让美国人真正有机会为家庭提供体面的医疗保健。目前，这对太多中产阶级美国人来说是一个不可能完成的任务。
They should also prioritize affordable housing and give Americans a real shot at providing decent healthcare for their families. Right now, that is an impossible task for too many middle-class Americans.
这不是一个问题，但我祈祷我们在11月3日——我的生日——能够迎来蓝潮。生日恰逢十一月的第一周意味着每六年，或是中期选举或是总统选举都会落在这一天。上一次是2020年，我的愿望实现了，拜登击败了特朗普。我非常喜欢你们的节目以及它带来的多样性。居住在亚利桑那州（我们没有实行夏令时），我在周一至周五凌晨3点起床观看你们所有人。
Not really a question, but I pray we get a blue wave on Nov. 3, which is my birthday. Having a birthday during the first week of November means every six years, either midterms or a presidential election falls on that day. Last time it was 2020, and I did get my wish for Biden to beat Trump. I really enjoy your show and the variety it brings. Residing in Arizona where we did not adopt daylight saving time, I am up at 3 a.m. M-F to watch all of you.
感谢你们为让我们这脆弱的民主保持正轨所做的一切。—— Kerry O.，亚利桑那州佩奥里亚我只想感谢你和Mika。我多年来一直在观看你们，欣慰你们坚持报道真相。愿上帝保佑你们和同事们所做的一切。让我们保持我在MAGA之前所熟悉的美国。—— Sherrie S.，肯塔基州保龄格林副总统表示，他认为美国移民和海关执法局官员在很大程度上做得不错，而那些“搞砸了的人”应当承担后果。
Thank you for everything you do to keep this fragile democracy of ours on track. — Kerry O., Peoria, Ariz. I just want to thank you and Mika. I have watched you for many years and [am] glad you are steadfast in reporting the truth. God bless you and your co-workers for all you do. Keeping us the America I knew before MAGA. — Sherrie S., Bowling Green, Ky. The vice president said that he thinks the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have done a good job for the most part and that people “who screwed up” should face consequences.
他想找到一个“取得平衡”的方法，有一个地方可以去那里寻找答案。它叫《美国宪法》，若想了解更多信息，他还可以阅读所有为强化和阐明宪法而通过的相关法律。开国元勋们是故意让拘留一个人变得困难的。因此才有了无罪推定、举证责任、保护个人、正当程序、隐私与搜查扣押、保持沉默的权利、一事不再审、迅速且公开的审判、公正的陪审团、获得律师的权利、不得过度保释、不得过度罚款等等。
There is a place he can go to find how to “strike a balance.”It’s called the United States Constitution, and for even more information he could read all the relevant laws passed to re-enforce and clarify the Constitution. The founding fathers PURPOSELY made it hard to detain someone. Hence, presumption of innocence, burden of proof, protecting the individual, due process, privacy and seizure, right to remain silent, double jeopardy, speedy and public trial, impartial jury, right to an attorney, no excessive bail, excessive fines and more.
——基思·M，康涅狄格州斯坦福德当我在电视上看到特朗普集会的片段，看到他身后的人对他那些不人道、语无伦次、卑劣的言论只是微笑和发笑时，我大为震惊。我就是不明白他们怎么会认为这是一个总统应有的领导风范。我希望大多数人不想要一个娱乐明星当总统，而是想要一个有能力明智解决问题的人。而眼下，我们有很多问题。
— Keith M., Stamford, Conn. I am flabbergasted when I watch a Trump rally clip on TV to see the people behind him just smiling and laughing at the inhumane, incoherent, and despicable things he says. I just don’t understand how they think this is a presidential leader. I would hope most people don’t want an entertainer for their president but rather someone intelligently able to solve problems. And right now, we have a lot of problems.
我为他的那套把戏感到非常难堪。由于他的政策以及那些对苦难视而不见的民选官员，我们正在变成一个更愚昧、更病态、更贫穷的国家。我们应当坚持要求我们的领导人具备正直品格，品格特质很重要。——匿名我认为我们需要进行选举改革；事实上，这应该是他们首先要处理的事情。如果他们不对竞选开支设上限，任何正派人都无法参选。
I’m so embarrassed by his shtick. We are becoming a nation that is dumber, sicker, and poorer because of his policies and the elected officials who turn a blind eye to suffering. We should insist that our leaders have integrity and that quality character traits matter. — Anonymous I think we need to get election reform; in fact, it should be the first thing they tackle. If they don’t put a cap on campaign spending, no decent person could run.
如果不是有钱有势的人向那场竞选投入了5亿美元，像得克萨斯州参议员这样的选战根本不会势均力敌。我担心我们正在变成一个独裁者-寡头政府。——洛林·Z，康涅狄格州特朗布尔
Races like the Texas Senate wouldn’t even be close if the rich and powerful hadn’t poured $500 million into that campaign. I fear we are becoming a dictator-oligarch government. — Lorraine Z., Trumbull, Conn.