特朗普過渡團隊需要加快速度
On my first day as head of presidential personnel for Barack Obama, I woke to the surprising headline that Senator Tom Daschle of South Dakota had withdrawn his nomination to be health secretary.
在我擔任巴拉克.奧巴馬(Barack Obama)總統的人事負責人的第一天，我注意到一條令人意外的頭條消息：南達科他州參議員湯姆.達施勒(Tom Daschle)退出了衛生部部長的提名。
What seemed like a relatively small tax issue was attracting too much media and he decided to bow out.
看上去相對較小的稅務問題卻引起了媒體的太多關注，因此他決定退出。
Each day thereafter was filled with additional shocks and a schedule of back-to-back interviews, 400,000 CVs to review and background checks —
後來的每一天都充滿更多的震驚和一個接一個的面試，需要評估40萬份簡歷，並展開背景調查。
all amid constant media predictions, which usually had no connection to reality.
同時媒體一直在預測，而這些預測通常都與現實毫無關係。
For a new US administration to begin work straight after inauguration day, a daunting number of decisions have to be made within the weeks following the election.
新一屆美國政府要在總統就職後馬上開展工作的話，必須在選舉後的幾周之內做出數量驚人的決定。
This is particularly true in 2016, where policy differences with the outgoing administration are stark.
2016年尤其如此，因爲新政府與即將卸任的政府之間的政策分歧明顯。
Had Hillary Clinton won, it would have been a friendly process, with less pressure to replace people or policy.
如果是希拉里.克林頓(Hillary Clinton)獲勝，這會是一個友好的過程，替換人員或政策的壓力較小。
Yet even the most professionally managed transitions are chaotic.
然而，即便是管理最專業的過渡也會是混亂的。
If Donald Trump hopes to avoid disruption to the work of government, he needs to organise quickly, starting with personnel.
如果唐納德.特朗普(Donald Trump)希望避免他的政府工作中斷，他需要迅速組織，從人事開始。
More than 4,000 White House and executive branch positions need to be filled, including more than 1,000 that require Senate confirmation.
有超過4000個白宮和行政部門職位需要填補，其中1000多個需要參議院確認。
Picking the appointee is merely the first stage and triggers Federal Bureau of Investigation security clearance, political vetting and a review by the Office of Government Ethics to avoid financial conflicts.
物色人選只是第一步，接下來是聯邦調查局(FBI)的安全檢查、政治審查和政府道德辦公室(Office of Government Ethics)爲避免財務利益衝突所做的評估。
For some individuals, it comes as a surprise that they must lay bare all of the activities from their adult lives and unwind financial holdings to remove conflicts.
一些個人會吃驚地發現，他們必須報告他們成年後的所有活動，並賣掉金融資產，以消除利益衝突。
This takes weeks, where seemingly minor queries cripple the wider appointments process.
這需要數週時間，在這個過程中，看似微不足道的調查會拖慢整個任命程序。
President-elect Trump’s transition team has to take some key decisions right now.
當選總統特朗普的過渡團隊需要馬上做出一些重要決定。
First, they must be clear with nominees about their redlines on lobbying, representing foreign governments, employing illegal immigrants, infidelity or whether they have used marijuana (even in a state where it is legal).
首先，他們必須讓被提名者清楚他們在遊說、代表外國政府、聘用非法移民、不忠或者他們是否吸食大麻（即使是在吸大麻合法的州）等方面的紅線。
They will also need to consider the different standards of Senate committees; the banking committee has higher standards on tax issues for example.
他們還需要考慮各參議院委員會的不同標準；例如，銀行業委員會在稅務問題上的標準較高。
Being upfront will avoid future embarrassment, as the FBI uncovers everything.
開誠佈公將避免未來的尷尬，因爲聯邦調查局會揭露一切。
Second, the transition team needs to decide the importance of diversity in its administration.
第二，過渡團隊需要確定新政府多樣性的重要性。
Once one position is decided, it will dictate the make-up of other appointments.
一旦確定某個職務，它將影響其他任命。
And third, they will need to decide the balance of power in picking appointees in the cabinet agencies: does the cabinet secretary or White House make the final call?
第三，他們需要決定內閣部門人員遴選中的權力平衡：做出最終決定的是內閣祕書長還是白宮？
Concerns have been expressed that the Trump transition is behind schedule and is struggling to get organised.
有人擔心，特朗普政府的過渡工作已落後，而且忙亂沒有條理。
During the Obama transition, by this stage we had detailed policy plans and agency review teams in place, as well as lists of pre-vetted appointees for the positions requiring Senate confirmation ready on election day.
在奧巴馬政府過渡期間，到現在這個階段，我們已經有了詳細政策計劃和部門評估團隊，經過預審的需要參議院確認的崗位人選名單在選舉日就準備好了。
We still entered a world of organised chaos.
即便這樣我們還是進入了一個有序混亂的世界。
Our best-laid plans did not survive very long.
我們設計最完美的計劃也沒有堅持很長時間。
Given the apparent lack of planning, Mr Trump’s transition will encounter an exacerbated version of these challenges.
鑑於明顯缺乏計劃，特朗普的過渡團隊將遭遇更嚴峻的挑戰。
The appointments and confirmation process may be messier, particularly at levels below the cabinet where it seems even fewer preparations have been made.
任命和確認程序可能會更加混亂，尤其是內閣以下職務，特朗普在這方面的準備似乎做得更少。
This will have a knock-on effect: without these appointees in place, the administration will not be able to implement its policy and budget priorities.
這將產生連鎖效應：如果這些被提名人選沒有到位，特朗普政府將無法實施其政策和預算優先任務。
Perhaps in the coming weeks, we will see a more organised personnel process from Mr Trump.
或許未來幾周，我們將看到特朗普制定出一個更有條理的人事任命程序。
Failure to do so will mean a less capable leadership and further confusion in Washington.
否則這將意味着領導能力不足，美國政府將更加混亂。
Suspicion will increase in foreign capitals too about Mr Trump’s ability to lead the US.
外國政府也將更加質疑特朗普領導美國的能力。
