马蒂斯应获选“美国年度人物”

Let me state it upfront: I did not request a photo shoot with Jim Mattis, the US secretary of defence. Nor did he pre-emptively spurn me. That said, the Pentagon chief deserves to be America’s “person of the year”.

我先声明：我没有要求为美国国防部长吉姆?马蒂斯(Jim Mattis)拍照。他也没有先发制人地拒绝我。话虽如此，这位五角大楼负责人应该成为美国的“年度人物”。

In contrast to Donald Trump, who claims to have turned down Time magazine’s photo request for its upcoming person of the year, Mr Mattis does not seek media gratification. The retired general is a model of sublimating ego to a larger cause. He is the second-most important person in the Trump administration. But for Mr Mattis, we would be sleeping even less soundly at night.

与号称拒绝了《时代》(Time)杂志请求为即将到来的“年度人物”拍照的唐纳德?特朗普(Donald Trump)相比，马蒂斯并不喜欢在媒体上出风头。这位退役将军是为了天下大事而超越自我的模范。他是特朗普政府中的二号人物。如果没有马蒂斯，我们在晚上会睡得更不踏实。

His worth stems from character. At Mr Trump’s first full cabinet meeting in June, principals outbid each other in presidential adulation. Mike Pence, the vice-president, said it was the greatest honour of his life to serve a man who was “keeping his word to the American people”. Reince Priebus, the then chief of staff, thanked Mr Trump for “the blessing that you’ve given us to serve your agenda”.

他的价值源于性格。在特朗普今年6月召开的首次内阁全员会议上，内阁要员们争先恐后地向总统献媚。副总统迈克?彭斯(Mike Pence)称，能够为“正在兑现对美国人民的承诺”的总统服务是他毕生的最大荣幸。时任白宫幕僚长莱因斯?普瑞巴斯(Reince Priebus)感谢特朗普“为我们大家提供了效力于您的日程的祝福”。

Everyone did their best to mimic how a Kim Jong Un cabinet might sound. To be fair, Mr Trump did open the meeting in full Pyongyang mode: “Never has there been a president?.?.?.?who’s passed more legislation, who’s done more things than what we’ve done,” Mr Trump said. He still has not passed one significant bill.

每个人都竭力模仿或许只有金正恩(Kim Jong Un)的领导班子才会发出的谄媚之声。实际上，特朗普在开场白中就为这个会议确立了“平壤基调”：“从未有任何一位总统……比我们通过了更多法案、比我们取得了更多成就。”其实他连一项重大法案都没有推动通过。

In that context, Mr Mattis showed guts in stating his actual role: “It is an honour to represent the men and women of the department of defence,” he said. The US military existed so that “our diplomats always negotiate from a position of strength”, he added. He made no mention of Mr Trump.

在这种氛围之下，马蒂斯展现出了自己的勇气，他如实声明了自己的职责：“代表国防部的全体官兵是一种荣幸。”美国军队的存在使“我国的外交官总是能够站在有利的地位进行谈判”，他补充道，但只字未提特朗普。

There — in that Potemkin White House display — was the kernel of how the Trump presidency has unfolded. The show is all about one man. The others, barring Mr Mattis, are dispensable. Indeed, Mr Trump often taunts his staff about how easily he can fire them. Bullies never respect sycophants. Not once, however, has Mr Trump taken that risk with Mr Mattis. The chances of triggering his resignation would be too high.

这场“波将金式”(Potemkin)的白宫表演揭示了特朗普总统任期暴露出来的“骨子里”。这场戏只是关于一个人。其他人（除了马蒂斯）都可有可无。的确，特朗普经常奚落自己的阁员，吹嘘他有权随时把他们炒掉。横行霸道者从来不会尊重马屁精。但特朗普一次都不敢这样对马蒂斯放肆。触发他辞职的可能性太高。

But let us suppose he were to leave or to be fired. Indeed, it is plausible at some point. Mr Mattis has contradicted the president on several critical policies. Mr Trump tweeted on North Korea: “Talking is not the answer!” A few hours later Mr Mattis said: “We are never out of diplomatic solutions. We always look for more.”

但是，让我们假设他将离职或是被解雇。的确，这种假设在某个节骨眼上看起来可信。马蒂斯曾在几项关键政策上顶撞总统的表态。特朗普曾在朝鲜问题上发推文称：“谈判不是答案！”几小时后马蒂斯表示：“我们永远不会放弃外交解决方案。我们永远在寻求更多外交途径。”

When Mr Trump said the Iran nuclear deal was a disaster, Mr Mattis told Congress he would recommend the president should stick with the deal. When Mr Trump said transgender Americans would no longer be eligible to serve in the US military, Mr Mattis killed the initiative by requesting a review. Most tellingly, he was overheard reassuring a group of US soldiers overseas to stay strong while the storm rages back home. “You just hold the line until our country gets back to understanding and respecting each other and showing it,” Mr Mattis said. “We’ll get the power of inspiration back.”

当特朗普说伊朗核协议是一场灾难时，马蒂斯告诉国会，他会建议总统坚守这一协议。当特朗普称，将禁止跨性别人士在美国军队服役时，马蒂斯通过请求审议，冻结了这一举措。最说明问题的是，有人听到他安慰一群驻外美国军人在这场国内风暴中保持内心坚强。“你们只需要坚持下去，直至我们的国家重新学会相互理解和相互尊重，并展现出来，”马蒂斯说，“我们将重获鼓舞人心的力量。”

Let us hope his forecast is correct. In the meantime, America’s allies are becoming experts in cognitive dissonance. On the one hand they hear the US president downgrade their value while heaping praise on America’s adversaries. On the other hand, America’s defence chief tells allies what they want to hear. The US has not changed, he says. The phrase “America first” has never escaped Mr Mattis’s lips.

但愿他的先见是正确的。与此同时，美国的盟友正在成为认知失调的专家。一方面，他们听到美国总统贬低他们的价值，却给美国的对手点赞。另一方面，他们又从美国国防部长那里听到了自己想听的话。马蒂斯表示，美国没有改变。“美国优先”这个词从未在马蒂斯口中蹦出。

People around the defence secretary are not shy of stating his role. Abroad that means strategic reassurance. At home it means minding Mr Trump.

马蒂斯周围的人并不讳言他扮演的角色。在国外，他的角色意味着让盟友们在战略上放心。在国内，他的角色意味着“照看”特朗普。

When I asked a senior Pentagon official to list the department’s three strategic priorities, I expected North Korea would top the list. The response was: “Educating the president, educating the president and educating the president.” America’s allies know Mr Mattis does this — as do people in Washington.

当我请一名五角大楼高级官员列出美国国防部的三项战略优先时，我心想朝鲜肯定会居于首位。但我得到的答复是：“教育总统、教育总统、教育总统”。美国的盟友们知道马蒂斯在教育总统，华盛顿的政界人士也知道。

But what if he were to leave? Imagine if Rudy Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City, or Chris Christie, the outgoing New Jersey governor, were to replace Mr Mattis. Each would jump at the job.

但如果他要离开了怎么办？设想一下，如果由纽约前市长鲁迪?朱利安尼(Rudy Giuliani)或是即将离任的新泽西州州长克里斯?克里斯蒂(Chris Christie)接替马蒂斯。两人都会迫不及待地接受这份工作。

One of the reasons we still sleep at night is because Mr Trump would need to go through Mr Mattis to use nuclear weapons. Mr Mattis advises soldiers to “engage your brain before you engage your weapon”.

当下我们晚上仍然能够入睡的原因之一是，特朗普需要通过马蒂斯才能动用核武器。而马蒂斯建议官兵们“在动用武器之前先动动大脑”。

At a time when the US foreign service is being dismantled, Mr Mattis argues that the more the US spends on diplomats the less it would need to spend on ammunition. These are wise precepts. His nickname may be “Mad Dog”. In reality Mr Mattis is a rational human. In these times — and for that alone — he deserves a medal.

在美国外交部门遭撤并之际，马蒂斯主张，美国在外交官身上的花得越多，在弹药上需要的开支就越少。这些都是至理名言。他的绰号或许叫“疯狗”。在现实中，马蒂斯是一个理性的人。在当今世代，仅凭这一点就应该授予他一枚奖章。