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Is he above the law?
他凌駕于法律之上嗎？
The slow drip of revelations and convictions will eventually force America to confront a simple question
最終，逐漸披露的罪行將迫使美國面對一個簡單的問題
It was the kind of moment that would crown the career of a reality-TV producer.
這是一個真人秀電視制作人事業的巔峰時刻。
While the president of the United States was on his way to a campaign rally, his former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, was found guilty of eight counts of tax and bank fraud;
當美國總統在參加競選集會時，他的前競選經理保羅·馬納福特被判8項銀行詐欺與逃稅罪；
and his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, pleaded guilty to eight counts of tax evasion, fraud and breaking campaign-finance laws.
其前律師邁克爾·科恩，承認了8項逃稅、欺詐和違反競選籌款法的指控。
Cable-news channels needed so many split screens to cover what was going on that they began to resemble a Rubik’s cube.
有線電視頻道掩蓋正在發生的事，竟需要如此多的分區顯示屏以至于看起來都像魔方了。
Amid the frenzy, however, something important changed this week.
然而，在一片狂熱之中，本周有些重要的事情變得不一樣了。
For the first time, President Donald Trump faces a formal accusation that he personally broke the law to further his candidacy.
美國總統唐納德·特朗普第一次面臨正式指控，稱他為贏得競選以個人名義觸犯了法律。
Mr Manafort’s conviction did not surprise anyone who had followed his trial, or his long career as a political consultant available for hire by dictators and thugs.
馬納福特的定罪并未讓任何關注他審判的人感到意外，或者了解他長期作為獨裁者和暴徒雇傭的政治顧問的人對此也是意料之中。
Mr Cohen’s plea was more striking, because he was not just Mr Trump’s lawyer; he was the guy who made his problems go away.
相比之下，科恩的托辭更引人注目，因為他不僅是特朗普的律師；還是幫特朗普擺平麻煩的人。
This included making payments during the 2016 campaign to buy the silence of two women who appear to have had affairs with Mr Trump.
這就包括2016年大選期間向和特朗普傳出緋聞的兩名女性支付了用于“封口”的費用。
(The president has denied the affairs and now says he learned about the payments later.)
（特朗普否認緋聞，現在說也是后來才知道這筆錢的。）
But Mr Cohen told a court under oath that the money was paid “at the direction of a candidate for federal office”.
但是科恩在宣誓后對法庭說，這筆錢是“在一位聯邦辦公室候選人的指示下”支付的。
In other words, that Mr Trump told Mr Cohen to break the law, then lied to cover it up.
換句話說，是特朗普讓科恩打破法律，然后撒謊掩蓋事實真相。
Neither Mr Manafort’s conviction nor Mr Cohen’s plea is directly related to the allegations of collusion with Russia that have dogged the Trump campaign,
無論是對馬納福特的定罪，還是科恩的托辭，都與特朗普競選團隊被指與俄羅斯勾結沒有直接的關聯。
and are being investigated by Robert Mueller, the special counsel.
特別顧問羅伯特·米勒正在調查此事。
Yet neither case would have been brought without his investigation.
而沒有穆勒的調查，這兩起案件都不會被提起訴訟。
This week’s events mean that Mr Mueller now stands on firmer ground.
本周的事件表明穆勒的立場愈發堅定了。
It will be harder for the president to dismiss him without it looking as though he is obstructing justice.
對總統來說，如果不讓他看起來像是在妨礙司法公正，就很難解雇他。
And in such cases, convictions often lead to more convictions as those found guilty look for ways to save themselves.
在這種情況下，定罪往往會導致更多的定罪，因為那些被判有罪的人會尋找拯救自己的方法。
The question now is whether, and how far, Mr Manafort and Mr Cohen will turn against their former boss in return for leniency.
現在的問題是，馬納福特和科恩是否會和他們的前任老板對著干，以換取寬大處理。
As the slow drip of revelations and convictions continues, Americans will have to confront a simple question: is Mr Trump above the law?
隨著罪行的逐漸披露，美國人將不得不面對一個簡單的問題：特朗普凌駕于法律之上嗎？
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