CGTN时评| 政治权宜高于美国民众利益

The United States’ dominant role in international bodies is becoming history. Since taking office, Donald Trump has withdrawn the country from global pact after global pact.

美国在国际组织中的主导地位正在成为历史。自上任以来，唐纳德•特朗普带领美国退出了一个又一个国际条约。

He claims the exits were part of his pursuit of Making America Great Again. This is an excuse. They are acts of political expediency.

特朗普美其名曰退群是为了“让美国再次伟大”，但这不过是借口罢了。退群其实是一种政治上的权宜之计。

Why? Have a look at the income gap. 

为何如此？先来看一下美国的收入差距。

In 2018, the richest 10 percent of American households held 70 percent of total household wealth, up from 60 percent in 1989. The lower- and middle-class saw "essentially zero net gains in wealth" over the past 30 years. Their share of total wealth went down to just 1 percent from 4 percent.

2018年，美国最富有的10%的家庭拥有着全国70%的财富，这一占比在1989年还是60%。中下层阶级在过去三十年间 “财富的净增长基本为零”，使其社会财富份额从4%被压缩至仅剩1%。

This is an inevitable result of the U.S. system. A minority of people hold a majority of the total wealth. Former President Franklin Roosevelt understood the problem and his New Deal temporarily helped alleviate the wealth disparity.

这是美国体制的必然结果。少数人掌握了绝大部分财富。美国前总统富兰克林•罗斯福充分认识到这个问题，他推出的“罗斯福新政”暂时缓解了贫富差距。

But the Reagan Era saw an upsurge of neoliberalism and laissez-faire economic policies revived the income gap. No effective solution has been introduced since.

但是在里根时代，新自由主义的兴起和“自由放任”的经济原则导致收入差距进一步扩大。自此，政府未能采取有效措施解决这一问题。

Fast forwarding into the 21st century, American businesses were quick to move factories to developing countries. The cost of hiring a factory worker for one day in Argentina is 26 percent that of the United States. The corresponding numbers are 23 percent in Brazil, 13 percent in Mexico and 4 percent in the Philippines.

21世纪，美国公司迅速将工厂迁至发展中国家。在阿根廷雇佣一个工厂工人每天的成本仅为美国的26%。这个比例在巴西为23%，在墨西哥为13%，在菲律宾为4%。

Making profits is what capitalism is all about. But this has been at the sacrifice of blue-collar workers at home, as the shrinking factory sector inevitably led to job losses.

资本主义的本质是追求利润。但是美国蓝领工人却成了牺牲品，因为不断萎缩的本土制造业意味着就业岗位的丧失。

Trump's solution to the income disparity is the blame game. He has neglected the consequences of capitalism, and attributed the U.S. economic problems to emerging economies. This is why the president has waged global tariff fights and frantically pulled his country from global pacts.

特朗普的解决办法是推卸责任，他无视资本主义带来的后果，并把美国的经济问题归咎于新兴经济体。这是他发起全球关税战，带领美国疯狂退出各种国际协议的原因。

This style of capitalism, not globalization, is the root cause of the income gap. Fundamental reforms are the only solution. But Trump believes any attempt to redistribute the social wealth will harm American financial cliques.

这种形式的资本主义，而非全球化，才是收入差距的根本原因。根本性改革是唯一解药。但特朗普明白，任何旨在重新分配社会财富的行动都会不可避免地伤害美国财团的利益。

And the president’s attitude on tax demonstrates his desperation for the plutocracy's support. After his 2017 tax cut, the 400 wealthiest Americans paid a lower total tax rate than any other income group last year.

总统对税收的态度就足以说明他对财阀支持的渴望。2017年特朗普实施减税政策之后，最富有的400名美国人去年税率比所有其他收入阶层都要低。

But Trump cannot ignore his grassroots supporters' concerns. Blaming globalization is an easy way out. He does not have to worry about moving his sponsors' cheese, and saying no to international responsibilities helps woo blue-collar voters bearing grudges against globalization.

但同时，特朗普也不能无视其草根阶层支持者的诉求。把问题归咎于全球化是最简单的解决办法。这样，特朗普就不用担心触碰财阀们的奶酪。同时，拒绝承担国际责任的态度也方便他拉拢那些对全球化颇有怨言的蓝领选民。

This is irresponsible and is not a cure. Any government has the duty to help redistribute wealth. Shelving the problem only makes it worse. Trump knows it. But his political career apparently carries much more weight than making America great again.

这是不负责任的做法，也解决不了任何问题。任何政府都有责任重新分配社会财富。搁置问题只会让问题恶化。特朗普对此心知肚明。不过，他的政治生涯明显要比“让美国再次伟大”重要的多。

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