又中又英 | To be in a political morass | 褚簡寧

　　Over six months have passed since last November's US elections when voters took the Democratic Party down a peg by overwhelmingly supporting the Republican Party. To take a person or a political party down a peg means to show they are not as important as they thought. Republican Donald Trump won the Electoral College vote, which is required under the US system to be elected president. He also won the popular vote although only the Electoral College vote decides the winner. Trump's Republican Party also won both Houses of Congress. The Democratic Party’s defeat put it in a political morass for months.

　　The word "morass" means something that is complicated and difficult to deal with. To be in a political morass means to be in a difficult political situation. The Democratic Party doesn't have enough votes in Congress to overturn Trump or Republican Party policies it opposes. But the Party is now licking its chops because it believes it has found a way out of the political morass. To lick your chops means to think about something with great pleasure, such as a delicious meal or beating a rival. Trump has agreed to accept Qatar’s gift of a US$400 million Boeing plane to use as a new Air Force One.

　　The plane will belong to his planned library for private use when his presidency ends. The US Constitution strictly forbids such gifts. Taxpayers will have to pay many millions to turn the plane into a secure Air Force One. The Democratic Party is licking its chops thinking about using the gift as a campaign issue to regain control of Congress in next year’s mid-term congressional elections. It hopes to convince voters Trump is a corrupt president who is cutting benefits for low-income families but accepting a US$400 million gift.

　　自上年11月美國大選，選民壓倒性地支持共和黨，大挫民主黨銳氣（down a peg）以來，已經過了超過6個月。To take a person or a political party down a peg是指去殺某人或某政黨的威風，令他們不要以自己真的那麼重要。共和黨人當勞．特朗普贏得選舉人票，就是美國制度下當選成為總統的必要條件。他也贏得普選票，雖然誰人當選單單取決於選舉人票。特朗普的共和黨也同時贏取了國會參眾兩院。民主黨的落敗，令它多個月來陷入政治泥沼（political morass）之中。

　　Morass是指複雜和難以處理的狀況；to be in a political morass則是在一個艱難的政治處境之中。民主黨在國會沒有足夠的票數去推翻特朗普或共和黨所提出的政策。然而，民主黨現正暗自竊喜（licking its chops），因為它相信自己已找到出路，脫離這個政治泥沼（political morass）。To lick your chops是指想到某樣事情而喜在心頭，例如想到美味的一餐或是打倒一個對手。特朗普同意接受卡搭爾餽贈一架價值4億美元的波音客機，作為新的空軍一號。

　　當特朗普的總統任期完結，客機就會歸入他計劃中的圖書館，作私人用途。美國憲法嚴格禁止這樣的餽贈。納稅人也要付數以百萬元去將這架飛機改建成有保安設施的空軍一號。民主黨人正暗爽不已（licking its chops），想着在下年的國會中期選舉中，用這收禮事件作為競選議題，重奪國會的控制權。它希望能說服選民，特朗普是個貪腐的總統，他削減低收入家庭的福利，卻接納一份4億美元的禮物。

[email protected]
Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻