华盛顿——这是一个景色如画的场所，本该用于一场充满争议的竞选季的收官之战。但当特朗普总统周一下午站在林肯纪念堂倒影池前的讲台上时，他心中想的却是另一件事：生锈的管道。
“管道非常陈旧，状况很差，”特朗普举着他在倒影池下更换的老化基础设施照片说道，“现在的管道完全翻新了。它们是全新的管道。”
WASHINGTON—It was a picture-perfect setting for the closing argument of a contentious campaign season. But when President Trump stepped up to a lectern in front of the Lincoln Memorial reflecting pool on Monday afternoon, he had another matter on his mind: rusty pipes.“The pipes were very old and in bad shape,” Trump said, holding up photos of the aging infrastructure he replaced under the reflecting pool. “The pipes now are totally renovated. They’re brand new pipes.”
这位总统发表了近一小时的演讲，一些白宫官员曾将其推介为中期选举前一系列竞选集会的压轴之作，演讲内容集中在他第二任期内监督的众多建设项目和翻新工程上。他谈到了清理涂鸦、修缮喷泉和纪念碑，以及为国家广场重新铺草皮。
The president’s nearly hourlong speech, which some White House officials pitched as a capstone to a flurry of midterm election rallies, centered on the many construction projects and renovations Trump has overseen during his second term. He talked about cleaning up graffiti, fixing fountains and monuments, and resodding the National Mall.“Like the human being, grass has a life also,” Trump said.
“就像人一样，草也有生命，”特朗普说，“白宫前面的草坪很多很多年来都是非常劣质的草，现在很漂亮了。”
“The grass in front of the White House was a very inferior grass for many, many years, and now it’s beautiful.”
这些言论让共和党人感到沮丧，包括他的一些白宫顾问，他们私下表达了愤懑：总统选择不利用选举前夕这一高曝光度的演讲，重点阐述选民表示最关心的经济议题。近几天，共和党操盘手越来越担心本周选举将遭遇惨败——白宫内部气氛变得低沉。
The remarks frustrated Republicans, including some of his own White House advisers, who privately expressed exasperation that the president chose not to use a high-profile speech on the eve of the election to squarely focus on the economic issues that voters say they care most about. In recent days, GOP operatives have grown increasingly worried that they will suffer far-reaching losses in this week’s election—and the mood inside the White House has grown dour.
被问及对演讲的回应时，一位总统身边的人发了一张捂脸表情包。一位知名共和党策略师表示，背景很棒，但信息传递错了。另一位共和党操盘手说，如果共和党周二失去众议院和参议院的控制权，困扰倒影池的藻类将不再是他们的问题。
“他向来不以信息纪律著称，”即将卸任的内布拉斯加州共和党众议员唐·培根说。
Asked for a response to the speech, a person close to the president texted a facepalm emoji. A prominent Republican strategist said the backdrop was great, but the message was wrong. Another Republican operative said that the algae that has plagued the reflecting pool would be the least of their problems if Republicans lose the House and Senate on Tuesday.“He has never been known for message discipline,” said retiring Nebraska Republican Rep. Don Bacon.
他原本希望特朗普能更多地聚焦共和党的成就，例如减税和边境安全，这些话题总统在演讲中只是一带而过。培根补充说，情况也并非全然糟糕：“至少他没在谈论男人的屁股。”
He had hoped that Trump would focus more on GOP accomplishments such as tax cuts and border security, topics that the president touched on in passing during his speech. Bacon added that it wasn’t all bad: “At least he wasn’t talking about men’s behinds.”
演讲结束后，一些特朗普顾问辩称，这些言论并非意在作为竞选收官信息。但一位白宫高级官员周日在向记者预告演讲时，正是用这些措辞，称讲话将作为给选民的最后论证，也是总统吹嘘共和党成就的机会。
After the speech, some Trump advisers argued that the remarks weren’t intended to be a closing message. But a senior White House official previewed the speech to reporters in exactly those terms on Sunday, saying the remarks would serve as a final argument to voters and an opportunity for the president to tout Republican accomplishments.
特朗普将美化华盛顿视为自己最强有力的政治遗产之一，并曾对顾问表示，这能激发民众的国家自豪感。助手们私下曾劝他聚焦其他议题，但总统基本拒绝了这些建议，认为这一议题会引起选民共鸣。民调显示，大多数美国人不赞成他的建设项目，包括新的白宫舞厅，尽管大多数共和党人对这些项目持积极态度。
“总统是个建设者。你拦不住他，”内政部长道格·伯古姆周一在活动上表示。
Trump views beautification of Washington as one of his strongest legacies, and he has told advisers it inspires pride in the country. Aides have privately encouraged him to focus on other things, but the president has largely rejected that advice, believing that the issue will resonate with voters. Polls have shown that a majority of Americans disapprove of his construction projects, including the new White House ballroom, though most Republicans view them positively.“The president’s a builder. You can’t keep him away,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Monday at the event.
原本预计特朗普周一将在全国各地出席两场或更多集会，这是为期一个月、旨在激励保守派基本盘走出投票的行动的一部分。但他决定改为连线参加一系列线上集会，并在林肯纪念堂发表讲话，据知情人士透露，这是他酝酿了数周的想法。
Trump had been expected to spend Monday speaking at two or more rallies across the country, part of a monthlong effort to motivate his conservative base to show up at the polls. But he decided instead to dial into a series of virtual rallies and give remarks at the Lincoln Memorial, something he had been angling to do for weeks, according to people familiar with the matter.“We’re giving serious thought to changing the name to the Trump Reflecting Pool,” the president said at the beginning of his remarks, clarifying that he was joking.
“我们正认真考虑把名字改成‘特朗普倒影池’，”总统在讲话伊始说道，并澄清自己是在开玩笑。这一场景是这场充满非同寻常时刻的大选中的最新一幕。
The scene was the latest episode in an election filled with unusual moments.
特朗普戴着一顶白色“USA”棒球帽，向一小群国家公园管理局工作人员和媒体记者发表了长达53分钟、内容漫无边际的演讲。特朗普站在一张巨大的倒影池照片旁，照片配文为：“回来了，比以往更美！”他重复了集会演讲中的一些台词，但现场并未出现集会上典型的热烈掌声。相反，现场大多安静无声——出于安全预防措施，倒影池两侧的人行道已被关闭。
Trump, wearing a white USA ball cap, delivered a 53-minute meandering speech to an audience that consisted of a small group of National Park Service workers and members of the media. Trump stood next to a large photo of the reflecting pool with the caption: “Back, and more beautiful than ever!”He delivered some of the same lines featured in rally speeches, but without the raucous applause that typically accompanies them. Instead, the scene was mostly quiet—the reflecting pool’s adjacent sidewalks were shut down as a security precaution.
他在演讲中花了一小部分时间谈论大选，抨击民主党候选人是激进分子，并吹嘘自己签署成为法律的减税法案。今年早些时候，特朗普下令对这座历史悠久的水池进行翻新，声称他能比其他人更快、更便宜地完成。但由于出现绿藻大量繁殖，按时赶在美国建国250周年庆典前开放的计划泡汤了。
He spent a small portion of his speech on the election, attacking Democratic candidates as radicals and touting the tax cuts he signed into law. Trump earlier this year ordered up a renovation of the historic pool, saying he would do it quicker and cheaper than others. But plans to open it in time for America’s 250th birthday celebration were derailed when green algae blooms appeared.
特朗普还指责破坏者划破了新铺设的池底衬垫——他将其漆成了“美国国旗蓝”，但指控后来被撤销，承包商也承认犯了错。当总统吹嘘他在倒影池底部安装的新涂层时，他问道：“有人把那些照片给我吗？”一名助手端着一叠照片走到讲台前，特朗普举起照片一一评论。“这些是管道，”他说，并补充道，“那是全新的草皮，被破坏了。”
Trump also accused vandals of slashing the new liner—which he painted “American flag blue”—though charges were dropped and the contractor acknowledged it had made mistakes. As the president touted the new coating he had installed on the bottom of the reflecting pool, he asked, “Does somebody have those pictures for me?”An aide came to the lectern with a stack of photos and Trump offered commentary as he held them up. “These are the pipes,” he said, adding, “That’s brand new grass that was vandalized.”
特朗普将此次翻新视为恢复美国地位的一个更大工程的一部分。“四年来，我们成了全世界的笑柄，”他总结道，“我们被嘲笑得像傻瓜一样。每一位统治者、每一位总统、每一位首相、每一位国王、每一位女王都在嘲笑我们。但他们现在不笑了。”
Trump views the renovation as part of a larger project to restore the standing of the U.S.“We were laughed at all over the world for four years,” he concluded. “We were laughed at like we were stupid people. We were laughed at by every ruler, every president, every prime minister, every king, every queen. But they don’t laugh anymore.”Write to Alex Leary at alex.leary@wsj.com, Marianne LeVine at marianne.levine@wsj.com and Philip Wegmann at philip.wegmann@wsj.com