“小學(xué)生特朗普”：水門事件記者新書揭白宮內(nèi)幕

President Trump so alarmed his defense secretary, Jim Mattis, during a discussion last January of the nuclear standoff with North Korea that an exasperated Mr. Mattis told colleagues “the president acted like — and had the understanding of — a ‘fifth or sixth grader.’”

國防部長吉姆·馬蒂斯(Jim Mattis)在去年1月與特朗普總統(tǒng)討論朝鮮核僵局。在這場討論中，馬蒂斯感到十分震驚。他惱怒地對同事們說，“總統(tǒng)表現(xiàn)得像——他的理解力也像——‘一個五、六年級學(xué)生’。”

At another moment, Mr. Trump’s aides became so worried about his judgment that Gary D. Cohn, then the chief economic adviser, took a letter from the president’s Oval Office desk authorizing the withdrawal of the United States from a trade agreement with South Korea. Mr. Trump, who had planned to sign the letter, never realized it was missing.

還有一次，特朗普的助手們對他的判斷力感到十分擔憂，以至于時任首席經(jīng)濟顧問的加里·D·科恩(Gary D. Cohn)拿走了總統(tǒng)橢圓形辦公室辦公桌上一封信——這封信授權(quán)美國退出與韓國的貿(mào)易協(xié)定。特朗普本來打算在信上簽名，但他從未意識到信不見了。

These anecdotes are in a sprawling, highly anticipated book by Bob Woodward that depicts the Trump White House as a byzantine, treacherous, often out-of-control operation — “crazytown,” in the words of the chief of staff, John F. Kelly — hostage to the whims of an impulsive, ill-informed and undisciplined president.

鮑勃·伍德沃德(Bob Woodward)在一本廣受期待的書中洋洋灑灑地記述了這些軼事，將特朗普的白宮描述成一個拜占庭式的、變化莫測、經(jīng)常失控的運作系統(tǒng)，被一個沖動、孤陋寡聞、無章可循的總統(tǒng)心血來潮的念頭所左右——用幕僚長約翰·F·凱利(John F. Kelly)的話來說，是一座“瘋狂城”。

The New York Times obtained a copy of the book, “Fear,” which will be published next Tuesday by Simon & Schuster.

《紐約時報》拿到了這本題為《恐懼》(Fear)的書，該書將于下周二由西蒙和舒斯特出版社(Simon & Schuster)出版。

Mr. Woodward, a longtime Washington Post reporter and editor, has turned the internal dramas of several previous White Houses into best-sellers. In taking on Mr. Trump, he faced the challenge of an unusually leaky administration, which has already provided grist for countless news articles and one mega-bestseller, “Fire and Fury” by Michael Wolff.

長期在《華盛頓郵報》擔任記者和編輯的伍德沃德已經(jīng)把之前幾屆白宮的戲劇性內(nèi)幕寫成了暢銷書。在與特朗普較量時，他面臨的挑戰(zhàn)是這屆政府泄露信息異常頻繁，已經(jīng)為無數(shù)新聞文章和邁克爾·沃爾夫(Michael Wolff)的暢銷書《炮火與怒火》(Fire and Fury)提供了素材。

But Mr. Woodward’s book has unsettled the administration and the president, in part because it is clear that the author has spoken with so many current and former officials, though all on the condition that they not be cited as sources for the information.

但伍德沃德的書讓政府和總統(tǒng)感到不安，一定程度上是因為，作者顯然與許多現(xiàn)任和前任官員進行了交談，盡管前提是他不在書中將這些官員引為信源。

Mr. Trump, after initially brushing it aside as “just another bad book,” accused Mr. Woodward of making up quotes from Mr. Mattis and Mr. Kelly, and perpetuating a “con on the public.” In a tweet, he suggested that the author was a Democratic operative who had timed the publication to hurt the president politically before the midterm elections.

特朗普起初稱這本書為“又一本糟糕的書”，對其嗤之以鼻。后來，他指責(zé)伍德沃德捏造了馬蒂斯和凱利的引語，犯下“欺騙公眾”的罪。在一則推文中，他暗示伍德沃德是一名民主黨特工，選擇在中期選舉前出版本書來在政治上傷害總統(tǒng)。

The White House, in a statement, dismissed “Fear” as “nothing more than fabricated stories, many by former disgruntled employees, told to make the president look bad.” After hours of saturation news coverage on cable networks, “Fear” rocketed to No. 1 on Amazon.

白宮在一份聲明中將《恐懼》一書貶低為“不過是捏造出來的故事，很多都是由心懷不滿的前雇員編造出來的，說出來使總統(tǒng)難堪。”經(jīng)過數(shù)小時有線電視鋪天蓋地的新聞報道，《恐懼》在亞馬遜銷量榜飆升至第一位。

Some of the freshest details in the book involve Mr. Mattis, a retired Marine Corps general who has been viewed as an anchor in Mr. Trump’s cabinet. Mr. Woodward portrays Mr. Mattis as frequently derisive of the commander in chief, rattled by his judgment, and willing to slow-walk orders from him that he viewed as reckless.

書中一些最新鮮的細節(jié)與馬蒂斯有關(guān)，這位退役海軍陸戰(zhàn)隊將軍一直被視為特朗普內(nèi)閣一名重量級人物。在伍德沃德的筆下，馬蒂斯經(jīng)常嘲弄總司令(特朗普總統(tǒng))，并會慢吞吞地執(zhí)行在他看來魯莽的命令。

In the North Korea meeting, during a period of high tension with the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, Mr. Trump questioned Mr. Mattis about why the United States keeps a military presence on the Korean Peninsula. “We’re doing this in order to prevent World War III,” Mr. Mattis responded, according to Mr. Woodward.

朝鮮峰會時，特朗普和朝鮮領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人金正恩在高壓下會面。特朗普問馬蒂斯，美國為什么要在朝鮮半島保持軍事存在?“我們這么做是為了防止第三次世界大戰(zhàn)的爆發(fā)，”馬蒂斯回答——根據(jù)伍德沃德的書。

In April 2017, after President Bashar al-Assad of Syria launched a chemical attack on his own people, Mr. Trump called Mr. Mattis and told him that he wanted the United States to assassinate Mr. Assad. “Let’s go in,” the president said, adding a string of expletives.

2017年4月，在敘利亞總統(tǒng)巴沙爾·阿薩德(Bashar al-Assad)對自己的人民發(fā)動化學(xué)襲擊后，特朗普打電話給馬蒂斯說，他希望美國暗殺阿薩德。“我們派人去敘利亞吧，”總統(tǒng)說，加了一連串咒罵。

The defense secretary hung up and told one of his aides: “We’re not going to do any of that. We’re going to be much more measured.” At his direction, the Pentagon prepared options for an airstrike on Syrian military positions, which Mr. Trump later ordered.

國防部長掛斷了電話，對他的一個助手說：“我們根本不會這樣做。我們會慎重得多。”在他的指示下，五角大樓準備了空襲敘利亞軍事陣地的方案，特朗普后來下令進行空襲。

Mr. Mattis issued his own statement denying he ever used the “contemptuous words” that Mr. Woodward attributed to him. “While I generally enjoy reading fiction,” he said, “this is a uniquely Washington brand of literature, and his anonymous sources do not lend credibility.”

馬蒂斯發(fā)表了自己的聲明，否認他曾說過伍德沃德書中引用的那些“輕蔑的話”。“雖然我一般喜歡讀小說，”他說，“但這是華盛頓獨有的文學(xué)流派，而且他的匿名消息來源并不可信。”

Mr. Woodward’s reporting adds another layer to a recurring theme in the Trump White House: frustrated aides who sometimes resort to extraordinary measures to thwart the president’s decisions — a phenomenon the author describes as “an administrative coup d’état.” In addition to Mr. Mattis and Mr. Cohn, he recounts the tribulations of Mr. Kelly and his predecessor, Reince Priebus, whose tensions with Mr. Trump have been reported elsewhere.

伍德沃德的報道為特朗普白宮反復(fù)出現(xiàn)的一個主題又增添了一層深度：沮喪的助手們有時會采取非常措施來阻撓總統(tǒng)的決定——作者將這種現(xiàn)象描述為“一次行政政變”。除了馬蒂斯和科恩，他還講述了凱利，以及他的前任雷恩斯·普利巴斯(Reince Priebus)的苦難。根據(jù)其他報道，普里巴斯與特朗普關(guān)系緊張。

Mr. Cohn, Mr. Woodward said, told a colleague he had removed the letter about the Korea free trade agreement to protect national security. Later, when the president ordered a similar letter authorizing the departure of the United States from the North American Free Trade Agreement, Mr. Cohn and other aides plotted how to prevent him from going ahead with a move they feared would be deeply destabilizing.

伍德沃德說，科恩曾經(jīng)告訴一位同事，為了保護國家安全，他拿走了跟韓國自貿(mào)協(xié)定有關(guān)的信件。后來，當特朗普指示要一封授權(quán)美國退出《北美自由貿(mào)易協(xié)定》(North American Free Trade Agreement)的類似信件時，科恩和其他助手想辦法阻止他繼續(xù)采取行動，他們擔心此舉會嚴重破壞穩(wěn)定。

“I can stop this,” Mr. Cohn said to the staff secretary, Rob Porter, according to the book. “I’ll just take the paper off his desk.”

“我可以阻止它，”科恩對幕僚長羅布·波特(Rob Porter)說。“我就直接把信從他的桌子上拿走好了。”

Mr. Woodward reported new details about Mr. Cohn’s well-documented clash with the president over his equivocal response to the white nationalist violence in Charlottesville, Va., in August 2017. Mr. Cohn, who threatened to resign over the episode, was particularly shaken after one of his daughters discovered a swastika in her college dorm.

2017年8月，弗吉尼亞州夏洛茨維爾發(fā)生的白人民族主義暴力事件，科恩與特朗普對于后者在該事件上模凌兩可的回應(yīng)所導(dǎo)致的沖突，已經(jīng)有了很多記載，伍德沃德的書卻提供了新的細節(jié)。女兒在大學(xué)宿舍發(fā)現(xiàn)了一個納粹標識后，曾威脅要辭職的科恩尤其感到震驚。

Mr. Trump’s dealings with foreign leaders were similarly fraught. During a phone call to negotiate the release of an Egyptian-American detained in Cairo, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said, “Donald, I’m worried about this investigation,” referring to the Russia inquiry. “Are you going to be around?”

特朗普與外國領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人打交道，也同樣令人擔憂。埃及總統(tǒng)阿卜杜勒—法塔赫·塞西(Abdel Fattah el-Sisi)就釋放一名在開羅被拘捕的埃及裔美國人進行談判，他在電話中說，“唐納德，我很擔心這個調(diào)查，”他指的是通俄調(diào)查。“你還會在這個位置上嗎?”

In July 2017, Mr. Woodward said, Mr. Trump told Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull of Australia that he would exempt his country from steel tariffs, only to claim, nearly eight months later, that he had never made that promise. Pressed on it by Mr. Turnbull, Mr. Trump said, “Oh yeah, I guess I remember that.”

伍德沃德說，2017年7月，特朗普對澳大利亞總理馬爾科姆·特恩布爾(Malcolm Turnbull)說，他將免除從澳大利亞進口鋼鐵的關(guān)稅，但在近8個月后卻聲稱，他從未做出過這樣的承諾。在特恩布爾的追問下，特朗普說，“哦，是的，我想我記得。”

Mr. Cohn, Mr. Woodward said, concluded that Mr. Trump was a “professional liar.”

伍德沃德說，科恩認定，特朗普是一個“撒謊大王”。

He found a sympathetic ear in Mr. Kelly, another retired Marine general, who frequently vented his frustration to colleagues about the president, whom he labeled “unhinged,” an “idiot” and “off the rails.” Mr. Kelly’s reference to Mr. Trump as an “idiot” has been reported before.

他在另一位退役海軍陸戰(zhàn)隊將軍凱利那里獲得了認同，后者也經(jīng)常向同事發(fā)泄對總統(tǒng)的不滿，說總統(tǒng)“精神有毛病”，是“白癡”、“腦子壞了”。之前就曾有過報道，說凱利稱特朗普是“白癡”。

“We’re in crazytown,” Mr. Kelly said in one meeting, according to Mr. Woodward. “I don’t even know why any of us are here. This is the worst job I’ve ever had.”

伍德沃德說，凱利有一次開會的時候說，“我們這是在瘋狂城。我甚至不知道我們怎么會在這里的。這是我做過的最爛的一份工作。”

Mr. Kelly also issued a denial on Tuesday, saying that “the idea I ever called the president an idiot is not true” and repeating his earlier insistence that he and Mr. Trump had “an incredibly candid and strong relationship.”

凱利周二發(fā)表聲明，否認了這個說法，他表示，“說我曾經(jīng)稱總統(tǒng)是白癡的消息不屬實”，并重申了早前的說法，即他和特朗普有著“極其坦誠和牢固的關(guān)系”。

In Mr. Woodward’s account, Mr. Trump rarely returns the loyalty of his subordinates. He derided Attorney General Jeff Sessions, one of his earliest political supporters, as “mentally retarded” and a “dumb Southerner,” mimicking his accent and making fun of his halting answers during his Senate confirmation hearing.

在伍德沃德的描述中，特朗普很少回報下屬的忠誠。司法部長杰夫·塞申斯(Jeff Sessions)是特朗普最早的政治支持者之一，但他嘲笑對方“智障”，是“愚蠢的南方人”，模仿他在參議院確認聽證會上的口音，取笑他吞吞吐吐的回答。

Mr. Trump referred to Mr. Priebus as a “little rat” who just “scurries around.” For his part, Mr. Priebus described the White House as a Hobbesian world, in which officials delight in sticking knives into one another, according to the book.

特朗普稱普利巴斯是只“小老鼠”，只會“四處亂竄”。書中說，普利巴斯把白宮描述成一個霍布斯式的世界，在這個世界里，官員們喜歡背后互相捅刀子。

“When you put a snake and rat and falcon and a rabbit and a shark and a seal into a zoo without walls, things started getting nasty and bloody,” said Mr. Priebus, whom Mr. Trump eventually ousted and abandoned on a rain-slicked tarmac at Andrews Air Force Base.

“當你把一條蛇、一只老鼠、一只獵鷹、一只兔子、一頭鯊魚和一頭海豹放進一個沒有圍墻的動物園，事情開始變得血腥，令人厭惡，”普利巴斯說，特朗普最終撤了他的職，把他扔在了被雨水打濕的安德魯斯空軍基地停機坪上。

Mr. Woodward, who began speaking to Mr. Trump’s aides even before the inauguration, also documented the misgivings of the president’s former lawyer, John Dowd, about whether the president should submit to questions from the special counsel in the Russia investigation, Robert S. Mueller III.

伍德沃德甚至在就職典禮前就開始和特朗普的助手交談，他記錄了總統(tǒng)前律師約翰·多德(John Dowd)的疑慮，多德認為總統(tǒng)不應(yīng)接受通俄門調(diào)查特別檢察官羅伯特·S·穆勒三世(Robert S. Mueller III)的質(zhì)詢。

“Don’t testify,” Mr. Dowd told the president. “It’s either that or an orange jump suit.”

“不要作證，”多德告訴總統(tǒng)。“要不就得進監(jiān)牢。”

Mr. Dowd denied on Tuesday that he ever said that.

多德于周二否認自己說過這話。

Last January, Mr. Woodward writes, Mr. Dowd staged a practice session in the White House residence to dramatize the pressures Mr. Trump would face in a session with Mr. Mueller. The president stumbled repeatedly, contradicting himself and lying, before he exploded in anger.

去年1月，伍德沃德寫道，多德在白宮舉行了一次演習(xí)，用戲劇化的方式模擬特朗普與穆勒會談時可能面臨的壓力。總統(tǒng)一再結(jié)結(jié)巴巴、自相矛盾、滿口謊言，最后憤怒地爆發(fā)。

“This thing’s a goddamn hoax,” Mr. Trump declared. “I don’t really want to testify.”

“這件事是一場該死的惡作劇，”特朗普宣稱。“我也不想作證的。”

Mr. Woodward said he tried to get access to the president but did not interview him. After he had completed the manuscript, Mr. Trump called Mr. Woodward to express regret for not talking to him, blaming it on aides who he said had failed to inform him of interest.

伍德沃德說，他試圖接觸總統(tǒng)，但沒有采訪他。在完成手稿之后，特朗普打電話給伍德沃德，因為沒能和他說話而表示遺憾，并說這都怪助手沒有告訴他相關(guān)事宜。

In a transcript and a tape of the call published Tuesday by the The Post, Mr. Woodward told Mr. Trump he interviewed many White House officials outside their offices, and gathered extensive documentation. “It’s a tough look at the world and the administration and you,” he told Mr. Trump.

在星期二由《郵報》公布的電話和錄音帶中，伍德沃德告訴特朗普，他在很多白宮官員下班后采訪了他們，并收集了大量文件。“這是對這個世界、這個政府和你的嚴厲審視，”他告訴特朗普。

“Right,” the president replied. “Well, I assume that means it’s going to be a negative book.”

“好吧，”總統(tǒng)回答道。“好吧，那我猜這意味著它會是一本負面的書了。”