2026年11月8日 美国东部时间上午10:15 / CBS新闻
周二这场具有里程碑意义的选举向当下的美国传递了怎样的信号？以下是普利策奖获奖作者、历史学家乔恩·米查曼的观点：
在密苏里州独立城度过漫长退休生活的哈里·杜鲁门，曾花大量时间思索民主与历史的意义。他说过：“这个国家必须不时醒悟，意识到人民要为自己选出的政府负责。”
本周，美国选民猛然觉醒，发起了一场具有历史规模的抗议。从缅因州到堪萨斯州，民主党颠覆了数年来人们对这个被认为最为稳定的政治格局的固有认知，取得的胜利让民主党人、共和党人以及独立派都重新意识到了选票所蕴含的原始而深刻的力量。
目前民主党已翻转了超过40个众议院席位。以下是中期选举中所有控制权发生变更的选区。
民主之所以纷乱，正是因为我们（你和我）本身就是纷乱的。美国的开国元勋们深知这一点。詹姆斯·麦迪逊曾写道：“如果人都是天使，就不需要任何政府了。”而显然，人绝非天使，因此美国政府的设计初衷就是遏制我们的激情，平衡我们的弱点。
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十年以来，我们自身“非天使”时刻所引发的问题一直十分深刻：美国是不是一个建立在平等、尊严、公平竞争和法治基础上的可持续国家？我们是不是一个尊重失利选举的共和国？我们是不是一个政客和党派人士能够输得体面、赢得体面的国家？
这些问题超越了红蓝阵营的对立；它们比任何政策辩论或税率都更宏大。而此刻，人民已经给出了肯定且明确的答案。这个结果已被接受。人民的声音已被听到。民主取得了胜利。
希腊人说得没错：性格即命运——而在希腊语中，“命运”也可译为“定数”。因此，美国的命运取决于我们的心智与性情，取决于我们不惧而望的能力，取决于我们愿意顺从自身本性中的善良天使，而非最坏的本能。
有一点十分明确：那些善良天使度过了美好的一周，因为民主也度过了美好的一周。无论你属于哪个政党，这对美国和美国人民而言都是好事。
故事由罗伯特·马尔斯顿制作。编辑：杰森·施密特。
更多信息：
jonmeacham.com
乔恩·米查姆所著《美国的奋斗：民主、异议与更完美联邦的追求：文集》（兰登书屋出版），有精装本、大字版平装本、电子书及有声书，可通过亚马逊、巴诺书店及Bookshop.org购买。
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/jon-meacham-on-the-midterms-and-americas-better-angels/
Jon Meacham on the midterms and America’s “better angels”
November 8, 2026 / 10:15 AM EST / CBS News
What does Tuesday’s seismic election say about America today? Perspective from Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian Jon Meacham:
In his long retirement in Independence, Missouri, Harry Truman spent a great deal of time musing about democracy and history. “The country,” he remarked, “has to awaken every now and then to the fact that the people are responsible for the government they get.”
This week an American electorate woke with a start, registering a protest of historic dimensions. From Maine to Kansas, the Democratic Party upended years of assumptions about what was thought to be the most static of political landscapes, producing victories that reminded everyone — Democrat, Republican, and Independent — of the raw and resonant power of the ballot.
Democrats have now flipped over 40 House seats. Here are all the districts that changed control in the midterms
Democracy is messy because we (you and I) are messy. The American Founders understood this. “If men were angels,” James Madison wrote, “no government would be necessary”— and given that men are so self-evidently un-angelic, the American government was designed to check our passions and balance our failings.
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For a decade now, the issues of our own un-angelic moments have been profound: Is the United States a sustainable enterprise grounded in equality, dignity, fair play, and the rule of law? Are we a republic that respects elections that go the other way? Are we a country with politicians and partisans able to lose graciously, and win graciously?
These questions transcend red and blue; they’re bigger than any policy debate or tax rate. And for the moment, the people have answered them affirmatively and definitively. The verdict has been accepted. The people have been heard. Democracy has prevailed.
The Greeks were right: character is destiny — and destiny in Greek can also be translated as “fate.” And so, America’s fate depends on our dispositions of heart and of mind, on our capacity not to fear but to hope, on our willingness to heed not our worst instincts, but the better angels of our nature.
This much is clear: Those better angels had a good week, because democracy had a good week. No matter your party, that’s good for America, and Americans.
Story produced by Robert Marston. Editor: Jason Schmidt.
For more info:
jonmeacham.com
“American Struggle: Democracy, Dissent, and the Pursuit of a More Perfect Union: An Anthology” by Jon Meacham (Random House), in Hardcover, Large Print Trade Paperback, eBook and Audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Bookshop.org
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/jon-meacham-on-the-midterms-and-americas-better-angels/
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