For Many， Life in Trump’s Orbit Ends in a Crash Landing
围着川普转，难免硬着陆
Proximity to President Trump has been a crushing experience for many people who arrived in his orbit with stellar careers and independent reputations and ended up losing so much.Tom Brenner/The New York Times
WASHINGTON — Another day， another casualty。 Or two。
又一天，又一个出事的——兴许是两个。
By the time the sun set Thursday，Dr。 Ronny L。 Jackson was a failed cabinet nomineewhose life had been picked apart for public consumption， andMichael D。 Cohen was back in courtfacing possible criminal prosecution。
周四日落前，白宫医生罗尼·杰克逊进内阁失败，他的生活倒被公众扒出来消遣，特朗普私人律师迈克尔·科恩则被送上法庭上，兴许还要面临刑事指控。
A ride on President Trump’s bullet train can be thrilling， but it is often a brutal journey that leaves some bloodied by the side of the tracks。 In only 15 months in office， Mr。 Trump has burned through a record number of advisers and associates who have found themselves in legal， professional or personal trouble， or even all three。
搭上总统特朗普的高速列车可能很刺激，可往往是一段残暴的旅行，有人会被血淋淋地抛在轨道旁。就任刚15个月，特朗普先生就创下纪录，折掉了大批顾问和副手，他们或陷入法律纠纷，或违反职业道德，或出现个人问题，甚至三者皆有之。
Half of the top aides who came to the White House with Mr。 Trump in 2017 are gone， many under painful circumstances， either because they fell out with the boss or came under the harsh scrutiny that comes with him.Some of the president’s longest-serving aides have left with bruises。 His son and son-in-law have hired lawyers and been interrogated。 Even his lawyers now have lawyers as they face inquiries of their own。
2017年随川普入宫的高级幕僚半数都不在了，许多人黯然离场，或因失宠于老板，或因审查缠身，有几个给总统打工最久的幕僚狼狈去职。总统的儿子和女婿雇了律师，遭到审问，甚至总统自己的律师也请了律师，他们也官司缠身。
Proximity to Mr。 Trump has been a crushing experience for many who arrived with stellar careers and independent reputations yet ended up losing so much.Rex W。 Tillersonran the world’s largest energy company.David Shulkinwas a respected doctor and a“high priest”of the medical world。 Lt。 Gen.H。 R。 McMasterwas an admired warrior。 So wasJohn F。 Kelly.Jeff Sessionsheld a safe seat in Congress。 So didTom Price。 Now all of them are known for unhappy associations with Mr。 Trump。
与特朗普先生混在一起实在让人难忘，许多前途光明、堂堂正正的人到头来名声扫地。雷克斯·蒂勒森曾掌管着世界上最大的能源公司；大卫·舒尔金是响当当的医生，医学界的“大祭司”；麦克马斯特将军是人民爱戴的战士，约翰·凯利也一样；杰夫·塞申斯在国会干得稳稳的，还有汤姆·普赖斯——现在他们和川普的关系都是一言难尽。
All of them， of course， had varying degrees of responsibility for the troubles that would ultimately befall them。 But like Dr。 Jackson and Mr。 Cohen， they have all emerged from the other end of Mr。 Trump’s world deeply damaged。 And their collective fate serves as a cautionary tale for those who might otherwise be tempted to join the president’s team but worry that they， too， might pay a price that would be too costly。
当然，所有人都或多或少地要为结局负点责任，但同杰克逊和科恩一样，被从特朗普世界的扔出来时，他们都被糟蹋得够呛。对那些可能想加入总统团队、却担心也会付出沉重代价的人而言，这些人的共同命运不啻为一种警告。
Mr。 Trump expressed outrage on Thursday about the toll exacted on some people close to him。 Dr。 Jackson， the White House physician and rear admiral whowithdrew as nomineefor secretary of Veterans Affairs after accusations of drinking on official trips and badgering his staff， is “an incredible man” whom Democrats were “trying to destroy，”Mr。 Trump said on “Fox & Friends。”
周四，看到自己的身边人遭打击，特朗普先生大为光火。白宫医生、海军少将杰克逊大夫被控出差期间酗酒并骚扰下属，特朗普先生在《福克斯和朋友》上说，杰克逊是民主党人“要毁了”的“大善人”。
The president attributed it to the toxic atmosphere of the capital， saying he warned Dr。 Jackson。 “I did say welcome to Washington，” he said。 “Welcome to the swamp。 Welcome to the world of politics。”
总统将这归因于首都的有毒氛围，他表示警告过杰克逊。“我说过，欢迎来华府，欢迎来这个泥潭，欢迎来政治世界。”
Mr。 Trump likewise said that Mr。 Cohen， his longtime lawyer whopaid $130，000 toStephanie Clifford， the pornographic film actress known as Stormy Daniels， before the 2016 election and now faces a federal investigation， is “a great guy” who “did absolutely nothing wrong” in that matter。
特朗普先生还说，他的老律师科恩先生是个“好人”，“绝对没做错什么事”，科恩在2016年大选前向艺名史多美·达尼尔斯的艳星斯蒂芬妮·克利福德支付过13万美元，目前面临联邦调查。
But as he has with other advisers who have gotten in trouble， the president also distanced himself， suggesting that Mr。 Cohen was in trouble for business dealings separate from any legal representation he had done for Mr。 Trump。 “I’m not involved， and I’ve been told I’m not involved，” he said。
可当总统和其他顾问一样陷入麻烦时，他总能把自己撇得干净，他的意思是，科恩先生做生意倒了霉，这和科恩作为特朗普的法律代表是两码事。他说：“我没参与，据我所知，那和我没关。”
Over many decades， people who have entered Mr。 Trump’s circle have discovered that they are bit actors in a movie he sees himself starring in。
几十年来，进入特朗普圈子的人都会发现，他们都是跑龙套的，特朗普把自己当成主角。
“People are not people to him， they are instruments of his ego。 And when they serve his ego， they survive， and when they don’t， they pass into the night，” said Tony Schwartz， the ghostwriter on “The Art of the Deal，” Mr。 Trump’s first book。 “Ultimately， the fate of anyone who casts their lot with Trump is — you are passing through。 And I just can’t think of anybody for whom it is not true。”
“人们并非属于自己了，他们都是特朗普个人的工具。当他们为特朗普个人服务时，他们还能混下去，否则，就只好消失在黑夜中，”特朗普处女作《交易的艺术》代笔者托尼·施瓦茨说。“最终，压注特朗普的所有人，他们的命运就是，你可以走开了。我实在想不出哪个人最后不是这样的。”
Jack O’Donnell， the former president of Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City， and a vocal critic of his former boss， said many people have cycled through his world remarkably quickly without leaving much of an impression on Mr。 Trump。
大西洋城的特朗普广场酒店和赌场前总裁杰克·奥唐纳站出来反对他的前老板，他说许多人在他的世界中匆匆而过，可他都没印象。
“This is an individual who completely lacks compassion and empathy， and therefore the recycling of people， people crashing and burning， it means nothing to him，” Mr。 O’Donnell said。 “He might put on a public frown for a day because he’s upset that， in his mind， the admiral got railroaded out。 But Trump couldn’t care less about the admiral。”
“这个人完全没有同情心和同理心，因此人们来来去去，生生死死，对他都算不得什么，”奥唐纳说。“特朗普可能会一整天拉着脸，因为在他心里，将军被构陷了，这让人恼火，可他关心的根本不是这个将军。”
The president tapped Dr。 Jackson because he had come to like him and was impressed by him even though he had little management experience to run the government’s second-largest department。 Shortly after his selection， several senior White House officials warned Dr。 Jackson that it was a bad idea and that it was likely to end poorly。
总统要提拔杰克逊大夫，因为他看杰克逊挺顺眼，虽然他毫无管理政府第二大部门的经验。选择杰克逊后，立即有几个白宫高官警告杰克逊大夫说，这不是好事，可能没好下场。
But Mr。 Trump is a transactional person， and many have made transactional decisions to work for him understanding the risks。 For some， it is a sense of public service and duty to country。 For others， it is a calculation that the return on investment will be worth it。 Indeed， Mr。 Cohen has attracted enormous attention over the years as he built business ties because of his affiliation with Mr。 Trump。
可特朗普先生是个做交易的人，许多做了交易为他工作的人都知道风险所在。对某些人而言，这是一种天下为公、报效国家的使命感。对于另一些人而言，这是一种回报大于投资的盘算。实际上，多年来科恩先生风光十足，正是因为与特朗普先生的关系，才把自己的买卖做大。
Some who have come and gone managed to benefit from the experience in their own way despite the ordeal。 Sean Spicer， the White House press secretary who was mocked on “Saturday Night Live” and maligned by the president and the news media， nonetheless has received lucrative speaking contracts and has a book coming out in July。 Mr。 Tillerson and Gary D。 Cohn， the former national economics adviser， lost power struggles， but both still have hundreds of millions of dollars to console themselves， and friends say no one should feel sorry for them。
也有些人走个过场，设法从这段经历中受益，尽管经历令人痛苦。在《周六夜现场》被恶搞、被总统和新闻媒体诽谤的白宫新闻发言人肖恩·斯派塞如今拿着酬金丰厚的演讲合同，7月还有新书出版。蒂勒森和前国家经济顾问加里·科恩在权斗中失势，但两人还有数亿美元家产聊以慰藉，友人们说，没人为他们鸣不平。
Still， former advisers likeMichael T。 Flynn，Paul ManafortandRick Gateshave all been charged with or pleaded guilty to crimes and are looking at prison time。
可前顾问迈克尔·弗林、保尔·马纳福特和里克·盖茨，他们都被控或承认有罪，可能要面临牢狱之灾。
Others worry they may face the same fate。 Scott Pruitt， the head of the Environmental Protection Agency whose spending and security practices were spotlighted Thursday ata contentious House hearing， may yet lose his job。
还有人担心自己也是这个下场。周四，众议院听证会上吵翻了天，环保局局长斯科特·普鲁伊特公款私用、结交不慎，可能也会让他丢掉饭碗。
Other presidents have seen associates get caught up in investigations or scandals that were highlighted or magnified because of their closeness。 Plenty of advisers， aides and friends ofRonald ReaganandBill Clintonmet untimely ends to their political careers or even went to prison， and critics of both presidents often said they did not seem to care about the consequences to those around them。
以前也有一些总统的副手被调查或涉嫌丑闻，因为和总统关系密切而被炒作夸大。罗纳德·里根和比尔·克林顿的众多顾问、助手和朋友提前结束了政治生涯，甚或身陷囹圄，两位总统的批评者常说他们看起来不关系身边人的下场。
The closer someone gets to a president， the harsher the spotlight can be。 Many who seek the power and stature of the White House somehow convince themselves that their own foibles or misdeeds will not be exposed， only to learn otherwise， or become intoxicated by their new positions of influence and exercise poor judgment。
同总统走得越近，被曝得越狠。许多在白宫谋求权力和地位的人，莫名其妙地让自我相信，自己的缺陷或不端不会被发现，结果事与愿违，或是他们沉迷于大权在握，冲昏了头。
And Washington can be especially unforgiving。 “Here， ruining people is considered sport，” Vincent W。 Foster Jr。， a longtime Clinton friend and aide， wrote before killing himself in 1993。
华府尤其无情。“在这里，统治人民被认为是一种游戏，”克林顿的老朋友和老部下小文森特·福斯特在1993年自杀前写道。
Several people who have been close to Mr。 Trump over the years say that he is exceptionally good at rationalizing his own behavior to himself， and compartmentalizing the types of personal catastrophes that would leave other people emotionally ravaged。
这些年来同特朗普先生走得近的几个人说，他特别擅长给自己的行为找理由，并将会给他人带来心灵痛苦的个人灾难分门别类。
“I think that loyalty has always been a one-way street with Trump， and he doesn’t really care about the wreckages he engenders as long as he comes out where he wants to be，” said Tim O’Brien， a biographer who was sued by Mr。 Trump over a book reporting that Mr。 Trump had inflated his net worth。
“我认为忠诚永远是你对特朗普的，他不在乎自己造的孽，只要他得到想要的东西，”蒂姆·奥布莱恩说，他写了一本书，讲述特朗普先生如何抬高个人净值，特朗普因此起诉了他。
“Ronny Jackson’s reputation would never have been in play had the president not put him up for this job，” Mr。 O’Brien said， adding that in Mr。 Trump’s mind， the issue is， “Ronny was great， but Washington is a snake pit。”
“如果总统不让他做这个工作，罗尼·杰克逊的名声可能永远不会成为人们的谈资，”奥布莱恩先生说。他认为，在特朗普心里，问题只在于“罗尼很不错，华府是一个蛇窝”。
Michael D’Antonio， another Trump biographer， said， “Anyone who engages with the president and， before that， with him as a business person， had to practice self-defense even if they were his allies。”
另一位特朗普的传记作者迈克尔·德安东尼奥说，“任何与总统以及与此前他还是个商人时有瓜葛的人都必须长个心眼，就算他们是一头儿的。”
“All that matters to him，” he added， “is what you say and do in the moment in front of him。”
“他看重的只是你在他面前的那一刻说了什么和做了什么。”
文章来源：英文联播
本文作者系新浪国际旗下“地球日报”自媒体联盟成员，授权稿件，转载需获原作者许可。文章言论不代表新浪观点。
