大多数美国人抱怨首都的政治僵局。华盛顿特区地区的通勤者则痛恨该市的交通瘫痪。
Most of America bemoans political gridlock in the nation’s capital. DC area commuters deplore the city’s transit gridlock.
但五角大楼负责人皮特·赫格塞斯现在或许会对华盛顿特区传说般的交通拥堵心存感激。看来，跨城交通拥堵可能阻止了他成为众议院历史上第三位遭弹劾的内阁部长。
众议院本周以 211 票对 204 票，通过了一项动议，将托马斯·马西众议员（共和党-肯塔基州）发起的弹劾赫格塞斯行动转交委员会处理。
But Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth may now be a fan of DC’s legendary traffic snarls. It appears that crosstown traffic may have prevented him from becoming only the third Cabinet secretary ever impeached by the House of Representatives. The House voted 211-204 this week to divert an effort by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) to impeach Hegseth.
众议院共和党人采取行动，阻止对弹劾进行直接的赞成或反对表决。
House Republicans moved to block a straight, up-or-down vote on impeachment.
取而代之的是，共和党人强行就是否将弹劾条款提交司法委员会进行表决。
Instead, Republicans forced a vote on sending the articles to the Judiciary Committee.
弹劾条款一旦进入该委员会，便会在那里搁置致死。如果众议院未能成功将弹劾条款转移，议员们随后将就实际弹劾进行表决。
That’s where they’d go to die. If the House failed to sidetrack the articles, Members would have then voted on actual impeachment.
如果简单多数投票赞成弹劾，赫格塞斯将加入 19 世纪战争部长威廉·贝尔纳普和前国土安全部部长亚历杭德罗·马约卡斯的行列，成为众议院历史上仅有的三位遭弹劾的内阁成员。但华盛顿特区街头的拥堵改变了众议院议场上的议事进程。所有民主党人表示，他们有意弹劾赫格塞斯。但共和党人面临出席率问题。
If a simple majority voted to impeach, Hegseth would join 19th century Secretary of War William Belknap and former Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas as the only Cabinet Members impeached by the House. But DC’s streetside congestion altered the parliamentary traffic on the House floor. All Democrats said they were intent on impeaching Hegseth. But Republicans faced an attendance problem.
七名共和党议员缺席。关于将弹劾条款提交委员会的表决非常胶着。一度票数为 204 票对 204 票。
Seven of their Members were missing. The vote on sending the impeachment articles to committee was tight. The tally read 204-204 at one point.
根据规则，平票即否决。这将迫使众议院就实际弹劾进行表决。但又有几名共和党议员陆续赶到。缺席的民主党议员却始终未现身。丹·纽豪斯众议员（共和党-华盛顿州）主持了表决。
By rule, tie votes fail. That would have compelled a vote on actual impeachment. But a few more Republicans trickled in. The absent Democrats never did. Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.) presided over the vote.
他敲槌宣布，赞成将弹劾条款提交委员会的票数为 211 票，反对票为 204 票。
He gaveled it closed at 211 yeas to send the articles to the committee and 204 votes against.
至此，弹劾赫格塞斯的尝试宣告结束。有 11 名民主党议员缺席点名表决。这关乎数字游戏。若倒戈四票，赫格塞斯将以 208 票对 207 票被弹劾。
That was it. The Hegseth impeachment quest was dead. Eleven Democrats missed the roll call. It’s about the math. Flip four votes and Hegseth would have been impeached, 208-207.
而且，若所有 11 名缺席的民主党议员都赶到国会大厦并投票，众议院极有可能以 215 票对 211 票弹劾赫格塞斯。即使只有 8 名民主党议员到场，结果也会是 212 票对 211 票。然而，由于民主党出席问题，共和党得以给弹劾进程踩下刹车。未能弹劾赫格塞斯，如今正在民主党内部激起愤怒。
And, had all 11 truant Democrats made it to the U.S. Capitol and voted, it’s likely the House would have impeached Hegseth 215-211. Even eight Democrats would have made it 212-211. However, thanks to the Democrats’ attendance issue, Republicans were able to tap the brakes on the impeachment interstate. The failure to impeach Hegseth is now fueling road rage in the Democratic Party.
“可耻，他们竟然不露面，”当选众议员理查德·奥赫达（民主党-北卡罗来纳州）说。
"Shame on them for not showing up," said Rep.-elect Richard Ojeda (D-N.C.).
“我不为那些在如此重要的表决中缺席的同事找借口，”众议员斯蒂芬·林奇（民主党-马萨诸塞州）说。如果民主党连交通堵塞都搞不定，就打不赢共和党。
"I don't make excuses for colleagues who don't show up on such an important vote," said Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.). Democrats can’t beat Republicans if they can’t beat the traffic.
众议员梅拉妮·斯坦斯伯里（民主党-新墨西哥州）是对赫格塞斯最直言不讳、最表现出鄙视的民主党人之一。
Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.) is one of the most outspoken Democrats when it comes to her disdain for Hegseth.
但当同事比尔·梅卢金质问她为何缺席表决时，斯坦斯伯里变得很有防备心。
But Stansbury grew defensive when questioned by colleague Bill Melugin about missing the vote.
“我就被困在街角那里，因为有警车护送车队把大巴从校园里开走。我人就在车里，就被困在街角那个位置，因为警察封锁了交通，”斯坦斯伯里说。“那为什么不早点来呢？”梅卢金追问。
"I was trapped right there at that street corner because there was a police motorcade moving busses off of the campus. And I physically was trapped right at that corner in my vehicle, in traffic because the police had shut down traffic," said Stansbury. "Why not come here sooner, though?" followed up Melugin.
“我早来了，但因为警车护送车队，我被困在车里动弹不得，”斯坦斯伯里说。也许是，也许不是。
"I did and I was trapped in my vehicle because of a police motorcade," said Stansbury. Maybe. Maybe not.
宪法的“言论与辩论”条款规定，议员在“前往和离开”国会大厦“出席各自议院会议”期间，免受警察干涉。这有点像外交豁免权。
The Constitution’s "Speech or Debate" clause exempts lawmakers from police interference when "going to and from" the Capitol for "their attendance at the Session of their Respective Houses." It’s kind of like diplomatic immunity.
几年前，众议员唐·拜尔（民主党-弗吉尼亚州）本应在休会期间主持一个简短的众议院会议。因一起事件，从北弗吉尼亚通往华盛顿特区的交通一度停滞。拜尔是那天唯一预定出席众议院会议的议员。于是拜尔向一名警察表明身份，该警察随即放行了他。
A few years ago, Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) was supposed to preside over a brief House session in the middle of a recess. Traffic heading into DC from Northern Virginia was stopped because of an incident. Beyer was the only Member scheduled to be present in the House chamber that day. So Beyer identified himself to a police officer who proceeded to let him through.
多年来，其他议员也曾援引“言论与辩论”条款为由，绕过无关的警察执法活动，前往国会山。
Over the years, other lawmakers have asserted the Speech or Debate clause as a reason to bypass unrelated police activity and get to Capitol Hill.
众议员乔纳森·杰克逊（民主党-伊利诺伊州）和劳拉·吉伦（民主党-纽约州）也表示他们被困在交通中。然而，众议员卢·科雷亚（民主党-加利福尼亚州）因医疗程序缺席。众议员史蒂夫·霍斯福德（民主党-内华达州）因个人紧急情况错过了投票。前众议院议长南希·佩洛西（民主党-加利福尼亚州）当时在加利福尼亚州。周四早上，华盛顿特区的交通再次干扰了议会进程。众议院在周四清晨就一项退伍军人法案进行了投票。
Reps. Jonathan Jackson (D-Ill.) and Laura Gillen (D-N.Y.) also said they were stuck in traffic. However, Rep. Lou Correa (D-Calif.) was out for a medical procedure. Rep. Steve Horsford (D-Nev.) missed the vote because of a personal emergency. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was in the Golden State. DC’s traffic interfered with parliamentary traffic again on Thursday morning. The House took an early Thursday morning vote related to a veterans bill.
众议院以271票对135票通过了该动议。但众议院在26名议员缺席的情况下敲槌结束投票。原因？一些议员再次因无法抵达国会大厦而受阻。
The House adopted the motion, 271-135. But the House gaveled down the vote with 26 Members absent. The reason? Some Members were again stymied from making it to the Capitol.
急诊室医生马特·兰伯特在一家健身房枪杀一人、枪击六人，并与警察对峙后举枪自杀。事件最初被报告为“枪手在逃”事件，哥伦比亚特区警察封锁了城市主要区域，导致交通瘫痪。这就是一些议员缺席周四点名投票的原因。他们被困在交通中。
Emergency room physician Matt Lambert killed one person at a gym, shot six people and engaged in a standoff with cops before turning the gun on himself. Initially reported as an "active shooter" incident, District of Columbia police locked down major parts of the city, stalling traffic. And that’s why some lawmakers missed Thursday’s roll call. They were marooned in traffic.
换个话题，众议员埃里克·索伦森（民主党-伊利诺伊州）实际上在议场参加了那次程序性投票。投票开始时，一阵微风拂过国会广场。随后薄雾笼罩了国会大厦。
Shifting gears, Rep. Eric Sorensen (D-Ill.) in fact made that procedural vote on the floor. When the vote began, a gentle breeze blew across the Capitol plaza. Then a mist enveloped the Capitol.
随后降下几滴较大的雨滴。接着阳光穿云而出。但很快又转为阴天。这是华盛顿一个阴冷的早晨。
Later, a few heavier drops. Then the sun broke through the clouds. But reverted to overcast. It was a dank morning in Washington.
“我想知道天气情况，”本人对着正轻快走下众议院台阶、走向台下等候的一群记者的索伦森大声喊道。
"I want to know what the weather is," yours truly shouted at Sorensen as he skipped down the House steps toward a group of reporters waiting below.
索伦森是一名气象学家，在2023年来到华盛顿之前，曾在德克萨斯州和伊利诺伊州的电视台工作了几十年。索伦森立即切换到气象播报员模式。
Sorensen is a meteorologist who worked for decades at TV stations in Texas and Illinois before coming to Washington in 2023. Sorensen pivoted immediately into weatherman mode.
“各位，我们将迎来不断增多的阵雨。周末气温会明显下降，”索伦森说道，精准复述了未来几天华盛顿特区的天气预报。
"We've got increasing showers guys. Much cooler temperatures for the weekend," said Sorensen, replicating the precise forecast for Washington, DC over the next few days.
这位从气象员转行的议员向右侧挥手，仿佛正盯着电视演播室绿幕上投射出的一幅中西部幻影地图。
The meteorologist-turned-lawmaker gestured to his right as though looking at a phantom map of the Midwest, projected against a green screen in a TV studio.
“上帝作证，我不挥舞双手就没法谈天气，”索伦森说。“我说高压，高压就在这儿，正处在国家的腰部地带。未来一周它将向我们这边移动。”大选过后，民主党眼下的政治天气预报看似不错。所谓的和风丽日、夜晚舒适。如果你愿意，可以称之为政治上的“高压”。
"As God is my witness, I cannot talk about the weather without moving my hands," said Sorensen. "I talk about high pressure. It's high pressure right here in the midsection of the country. And it's moving in our direction for the next week." After the election, the political weather forecast would seem good for Democrats right now. Supposedly balmy days and comfortable nights. A political "high", if you will.
“那民主党核心小组会议这边是不是有高压系统移入？”本人问道。
"So is there a high-pressure system moving here for the Democratic Caucus?" yours truly asked. "No.
“不，是低压，老兄。进入下届国会将是低压。我们只能尽力让大家团结在一起，”他回答。
It's low pressure, man. It's low pressure going into the next Congress. We’ve just got to keep everybody together," he replied.
但高压系统真的在民主党的长期预报里吗？还是说政治“低压”会带来风暴和大气波动——尤其是当进步派和中间派民主党人发生内讧时？
But is a high-pressure system really in the long-range forecast for Democrats? Or will a political "low" bring storms and atmospheric volatility — especially if progressive and centrist Democrats tangle with one another?
“我以为高压是好事，”这位靠谱的记者说。“没有副热带系统移入，没有快速移动的低压系统。”
"I thought high pressure was a good thing," said your trusty reporter. "No subtropical systems coming in. No clipper system."
“作为气象员，我负责的是推广，不是制作，”索伦森谈及地平线上可能出现的民主党风暴系统时说。“面对天气这种复杂议题，我能帮着跟民众天天建立联系，干了22年。但这里，这是美国最复杂的机制。我们得更擅长沟通我们为民众做了什么。”华盛顿特区的交通拥堵在过去几天已经让民主党受阻。龙卷风级别的政治风暴系统可能在民主党核心小组内部酝酿。这还没算上交通问题，光是让人赶到国会山就够呛。
"As a meteorologist, I'm not in production. I'm in promotion," said Sorensen of potential Democratic storm systems which might emerge on the horizon. "With a complicated issue like the weather, I was able to help connect with people every day for 22 years. But here, this is the most complicated mechanism in the United States. We’ve got to get better at communicating what we do for the people." DC traffic has already stymied Democrats over the past few days. Tornadic political storm systems may brew inside the Democratic Caucus. And that’s to say nothing about transportation and just getting people to the Hill.
交通和天气。要是民主党内部拳脚相加变得难看，嗯，恐怕得在体育节目里播了。正好跟冰球打架一块儿播。
Traffic and weather. And if the internal Democratic fisticuffs turn ugly, well, may show that on sports. Right along with the hockey fights.