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克林顿：呼声最高的民主党2016年候选人

Public opinion polls show that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is the overwhelming favorite to be the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee¹ in 2016, should she decide to run.

民意调查显示，如果前国务卿希拉里?克林顿参加2016年总统竞选，她的受欢迎程度目前遥遥领先。

There is no clear front-runner among potential candidates for the Republican Party nomination², suggesting a wide open primary battle in two years’ time.

共和党的名单中还没有明确的领先者，这将意味着两年之后的初选将是一场结果难料的激战。

Clinton has been a fixture³ on the national political scene for more than 20 years, as first lady, U.S. senator, presidential candidate and secretary of state.

作为第一夫人、参议员、总统候选人以及国务卿，希拉里?克林顿在过去10多年来一直在美国政治舞台上占有重要的一席之位。

She is expected to decide on a presidential run later this year, and, if she runs, would be a formidable candidate.

政治分析专家赫斯说，克林顿预计在今年晚些时候将决定是否参加总统竞选，如果参选，她将是一位极有优势的候选人。

"What is quite amazing in the Democratic Party, the president’s party, is that there is basically one candidate way ahead of the field and that is Hillary Clinton,” said political analyst⁵ Stephen Hess.

他说：“美国总统所属的党派，美国民主党内有一个相当惊人的现象，那就是希拉里?克林顿作为一名候选人遥遥领先。”

If she does run, Clinton can expect questions from rivals about her handling of the terrorist attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi, Libya, in 2012.

如果克林顿决定参选，她不可避免地会受到竞选对手对她对2012年美国驻利比亚使馆遭遇恐怖袭击事件的处理方式的质问。

She recently called the Benghazi attack her biggest regret, though last year she fended⁶ off political attacks on her handling of the incident.

虽然去年克林顿避开了对她处理此事的政治攻击，但她最近表示班加西袭击事件是她最大的遗憾。

“The fact is we had four dead Americans," she said. "Was it because of a protest or was it because of guys out for a walk who decided⁷ they would go kill Americans? What difference at this point does it make?  It is our job to figure out what happened and do everything we can to prevent it from every happening again. senator.”

前国务卿希拉里?克林顿说：“参议员，事实是我们有四名美国公民牺牲，究竟是什么原因，是抗议示威还是那些街上的人决定杀死美国公民？现在还有什么区别么？我们的职责是要弄清楚发生了什么，并且尽可能阻止类似的事情再次发生。”

As a presidential candidate, Clinton could face a challenge from Vice⁸ President Joe Biden, who is a distant second in the latest polls.

如果克林顿参加竞选，她将面临来自副总统拜登的挑战，他在最新的民意调查中排名第二。

Clinton’s status as the clear front-runner has pros⁹ and cons¹⁰, according to Hess.

赫斯说，作为明显的领先者，克林顿处境有利有弊。

“If you are way out there, everybody is shooting at you, gunning at your back, not only other possible candidates but certainly the media," he said. "So she is in a very exposed position. On the other hand, [she is in] a very good position in that she is raising a lot of money.”

赫斯说：“如果你是明显的目标，那么每个人都针对你，从背后攻击你，无论是其他候选人，还是媒体。她处在一个非常暴露的位置，但是另一方面，这对她筹集资金来说是很有利的。”

Clinton may have to distance herself from an unpopular President Barack Obama.

政治分析专家罗腾贝尔格说，如果克林顿参选，她可能被迫疏远不受欢迎的奥巴马总统。

“She will look for a number of areas where she has differences with the current president, her president, and themes that she addresses that convey a sense that she will be a candidate to bring change,” said analyst Stuart Rothenberg.

他说：“她会找出自己与现任总统的不同点和主题来向选民传达，她是一名会带来改变的候选人。”

Republicans have no clear front-runner at the moment, but possible contenders include New Jersey¹¹ Governor Chris Christie who remains¹² embattled in scandal over a traffic jam orchestrated by his aides.

共和党目前还没有明确的领先者，但是可能参选的包括新泽西州州长克里斯蒂。他目前仍被一起由他的下属策划的交通丑闻缠身。

A Christie stumble could open the way for others including former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, Texas Senator Ted⁴ Cruz and Kentucky Senator Rand Paul.

克里斯蒂的失利可能会为其他共和党人提供机会，包括前佛罗里达州前州长布什、威斯康星州州长沃克、德州参议员鲁兹和肯塔基州参议员保罗。

One of the most intriguing¹³ 2016 matchups would pit Hillary Clinton against Jeb Bush, says Hess.

赫斯说，2016年最令人期待的是克林顿和布什之间的对决。

“Everyone around the world would have fun with that because they are not familiar with many of the names, as they shouldn’t be, of American politicians," he said. "But those are two names that they know very, very well, Bush and Clinton.”

他说：“全球都会对此感兴趣，因为大多数人对美国政治人物并不熟悉，但是布什和克林顿这两个人的名字几乎众所周知。”

The official nominating process will not begin for two more years, but many of those interested in running in 2016 are expected to make a decision by the end of this year.

距离正式提名的时间还有两年的时间，但是有意想参选的候选人预计会在今年年底作出决定。