中新网评:美国众议长选举“连续剧”暴露美式民主痼疾******
中新网北京1月9日电(蒋鲤)在15轮投票表决后,美国众议院议长选举这场“连续剧”终于落下帷幕,众议院共和党领袖凯文·麦卡锡最终成功当选第55任美国众议院议长。这是美国国会过去164年来耗时最久的一次议长选举记录,将美国“对抗式民主”的弊端暴露无遗。
资料图:美国众议院共和党领袖麦卡锡。中新社记者 沙晗汀摄
由于两党对立加剧、党派内斗、利益分配不均等因素,众议长选举陷入一场拉锯战。在此次众议长竞选中,美国民主党议员继续抱团,多轮投票中,一票不投麦卡锡,共和党右翼“强硬派”领头的约20人小团体也拒绝投票麦卡锡。
麦卡锡的当选之路一波三折,除了本人的“政治投机派”角色在国会不受欢迎外,与共和党内部政治分歧关系密切。
一方面,共和党党内反对者认为,麦卡锡对民主党态度过于软弱,无力对抗民主党控制的参议院和拜登政府,另一方面,因为共和党的多数优势微弱,党内一些影响力较小的派系的政治力量则被放大,有利于他们巩固自己的选票。
此外,党内反对者也认为,自己的选票没有换取更多利益,希望以此作为筹码换取麦卡锡更大的让步,比如让他们获得众议院重要委员会中的职务。
作为仅次于美国总统、副总统的政坛三号人物,众议院议长通常由众议院多数党领袖担任,选举几乎没有悬念。然而,麦卡锡此次为当选,不得不做出多个关键让步,其中可能包括恢复一项罢黜议长动议机制,使得众议长的权力被削弱,难以掌控众议院。
美国有线电视新闻网CNN称,麦卡锡在这场不合时宜的政治勒索中作出让步,这种绥靖政策只会让极端主义势力更加强大。
这场引发全世界围观的尴尬选举暴露出美国政治存在严重的对立和分化。在权力博弈思维的裹挟下,党派利益凌驾于国家和人民利益之上,美国两党相互拆台,陷入“为反对而反对”的无脑对垒。而即便是一党内,也会因为利益分配问题产生不同的小派系,相互对抗,选票变成了谋利益的工具。
从国会山骚乱到打破记历史记录的15轮众议长选举,“对抗式民主”让美国政治陷入瓶颈,长期对抗势必会让政客们丧失客观公正的判断能力,其政治阶层是否有能力治理国家也会引发质疑。
两党之争和党派内斗进一步放大了美国政治体制弊病,美国所谓的“民主”形象,让全世界大跌眼镜。鼓吹以选民利益为先的美式选举,变成了政客们利益置换的游戏,进一步彰显出美国“民主政治”日渐失能,不断极化的党争已使美国政治制度陷入死循环。
House speaker election reveals deep-rooted problems in U.S. democracy
(ECNS) -- The Republican leader Kevin McCarthy was elected as the 55th speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives after 15 ballots. As the most grueling House speaker election in the past 164 years, the election has highlighted the defects of the country’s "confrontational democracy".
The election once reached a stalemate due to intense partisan strife, inner-party struggle among the Republicans, uneven distribution of interests, and more. Democratic Party members forged a close alliance, refusing to vote for McCarthy, while about 20 Republicans also declined to cast ballots for the GOP leader.
Except for his unpopular role as a "political speculator" in Congress, McCarthy’s hard-won election can be attributed to turmoil within the Republican Party.
On the one hand, opponents in the Republican Party believe that the GOP leader's attitude toward the Democrats is too weak to confront the Senate controlled by Democrats and the Biden administration.
On the other hand, the political power of some less influential factions in the Republican Party has been amplified due to the Party’s weak majority advantage in the House of Representatives, which is conducive to consolidating their ticket warehouses.
Meanwhile, these opponents believe that their votes failed to win them more benefits, hoping to use this as a bargaining chip for McCarthy's further concessions, such as getting them positions in important House Committees.
As the third political figure after the President and Vice President of the U.S., the speaker, by tradition, is the head of the majority party in the House of Representatives.
But McCarthy has made many concessions in order to bring the ultra conservatives along, involving what’s known as the “motion to vacate,” a mechanism by which members can force a vote to depose the speaker. The reported concessions will empower individual members at the expense of McCarthy’s sway as speaker.
CNN thought the concessions he made during this unseemly political shakedown would only make the extremist faction more powerful.
This embarrassing election, which has drawn global attention, exposed the serious opposition and polarization in American politics. Both Democrats and Republicans put their interests before that of the country and its people, attacking and opposing each other irrationally.
Besides, different factions arise within a single party and confront each other because of the distribution of interests. Votes have become a tool to win more benefits.
From Capitol riots to the House Speaker election with record-breaking ballots, "confrontational democracy" has become a bottleneck of American politics. Long-term confrontation will surely impede politicians to think objectively and fairly while their capacity of governing the country will also raise doubts among the public.
Both parties’ struggle and infighting among the Republicans have further amplified the defects of the American political system, with its "democratic" image shocking the world.
The U.S.-style election, which advocates putting voters' interests first, has become a game of interest exchange among politicians. In addition, it further demonstrates the malfunction of American "democratic politics" and the constantly polarized party struggle that has trapped the American political system into an infinite cycle.
专访|卫士通石元兵:密码技术创新发展要以应用需求为牵引******
置身于数字时代,数字基础设施安全、网络安全和数据安全愈发受到全社会的广泛关注和高度重视。目前,我国数据安全问题存在哪些难题待解?如何通过密码应用支撑数据安全和网络安全产业发展?在2022西湖论剑·网络安全大会期间,卫士通总经理助理、研究院院长石元兵接受记者采访,畅谈密码及数据安全产业的前沿视角。
记者:我国数据安全问题集中体现在哪些方面?
石元兵:数据的来源是多方面的:在推进数字中国建设过程中,各行各业各领域均会产生、采集、存储、处理和流通大量数据信息;另外,个人在网络空间中既是数据的贡献者,也是数据服务的使用者。单点数据的敏感性或者重要性相对不那么强,但是一旦大量汇聚,就面临着比较大的安全挑战。
从政府监管的角度看,《网络安全法》《数据安全法》《个人信息保护法》等一系列政策法规的出台,进一步强化了数据监管工作的落实,但还存在数据合规监管工作中技术手段不完善、支撑能力不足等问题。
从企业的角度看,现在还面临很多数据安全风险挑战。比如,违规、超范围采集个人信息和其他信息,甚至涉及到数据的非法交易和违规滥用。另外,政府部门既要考虑开放数据公共服务,同时也会面临数据跨部门共享利用等需求。这些问题或迫切需求,都需要通过技术手段、服务能力或运营模式的不断创新,去支撑相关各方的数据资源可信、可靠流动和高效应用。
从个人层面来讲,目前还有很多人对个人信息缺乏保护意识,需要不断加强宣传,不断提升公民对个人信息的保护意识和识别防范风险能力。
记者:在推进数据安全过程中,密码产业的重要性不容忽视。在发挥密码产业重要作用方面面临哪些挑战?
石元兵:在数据资源的全生命周期进程中,各环节所面临的风险不尽相同,呈现多样化的特点。密码是保障数据安全的核心基础支撑技术,除了数据加密,还可为数据隔离、数据脱敏、数据标记、数据溯源、共享利用等提供支撑。
在保障数据安全方面,需要识别实际场景中的安全风险,梳理出安全需求,并以此为牵引,从技术研究、产品研制、应用支撑和服务模式等方面不断创新发展,持续丰富密码供给体系和供给能力。密码的高质量供给,已经超越了单一产品提供的范畴,更侧重于以保护用户的重要数据为目标,提供基于密码的体系化安全防护能力,这就要求我们不能只聚焦于产品提供,更要关注实际应用场景和具体业务逻辑。
记者:密码应用将如何助推数据安全产业发展?
石元兵:重点是要以密码基础理论创新、共性前沿技术创新作为驱动力,以应用需求作为牵引力,发挥好密码保障数据安全的核心技术和基础支撑作用,助力数据安全产业的高质量发展。
记者:卫士通在商用密码安全方面形成了哪些经验?
石元兵:密码作为卫士通的核心能力之一,我们在为重要行业领域用户提供网络安全、数据安全产品和服务的基础上,不断追求创新发展,一方面提升密码技术、产品和服务等体系供给能力,同时加强与众多国内优秀企业的合作,把密码技术与基础软硬件、应用系统融合嵌入,发挥好密码保障自主信息技术体系安全的效能。(记者 孔繁鑫)
(文图:赵筱尘 巫邓炎)