[(Title)] Trump’s Putin pivot: Following a blunder, a dubious disavowal.

President Trump offers up an excuse regarding his remarks about the United States intelligence agencies and Russia.

特朗普总统就其对美国情报局和俄罗斯的言论编了个借口。 

Only a day earlier, Trump shocked and horrified America and its Western allies by appearing to take at face value Russian President Vladimir Putin's smirky denial of any involvement in meddling with the 2016 U.S. election cycle.

就在前一天，特朗普似乎直面相信俄罗斯总统普京否认参与2016年美国选举周期活动的回应，震惊了美国及其西方盟友。他基本就是在告诉世人，普京的言语比美国情报局的充分证据更重要。

Trump essentially told the world that Putin's disclaimer outweighed the American intelligence community's abundant evidence of the Kremlin's interference in the campaign.

On Tuesday, though, he delivered a severe case of whiplash.

然而，周二，他却打自己的脸。在与共和党国会议员的会晤前，特朗普在白宫发表讲话说，他在赫尔辛基会谈后审查过记者招待会上的文字记录，意识到当时自己是口误。

Speaking at the White House before a meeting with Republican members of Congress, Trump said he had reviewed the transcript of his news conference in Helsinki with Putin at his side, and realized he misstated what he meant.

To briefly review, here's what Trump actually said on Monday:  "They think it's Russia,"  he told reporters in Helsinki, referring to American intelligence officials.  "I have President Putin — he just said it's not Russia.

特朗普星期一说的是：“他们（美国情报局）认为是俄罗斯。但我问了普金，他刚才说不是俄罗斯干的。”他称普京的否认“强而有力”。

I don't see any reason why it would be."  In another moment at the news conference, he called Putin's denial  "strong and powerful."

Tumult followed. Leaders of Trump's own Republican Party denounced his embrace of Putin over America's intelligence community, and his refusal to acknowledge the incontrovertible evidence that Russia indeed had interfered in the presidential campaign.

这显然引起了骚动。特朗普共和党的领导人谴责他接受普京统治美国的情报界，并谴责他拒绝承认俄罗斯确实干涉总统竞选的不容置疑的证据。司法部起诉的12名俄罗斯军事情报人员涉嫌参与干预行动，加强了这一证据。

That evidence was bolstered by the Justice Department's indictment of 12 Russian military intelligence agents for their alleged involvement in the meddling effort.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, a Republican from Wisconsin, had to remind Trump that Russia  "is not our ally"  and  "remains hostile to our most basic values and ideals."

来自威斯康辛州的共和党议长保罗·瑞恩不得不提醒特朗普，俄罗斯“不是我们的盟友”，而且“仍然敌视我们最基本的价值观和理想。

On Tuesday came a mind-boggling flip-flop. Trump said he realized  "there's need for some clarification."

周二，他遭到令人难以置信的翻转。特朗普说，他意识到自己“得澄清一下”。

"I said 'would' instead of 'wouldn't.' "  In other words, Trump now was claiming that what he meant to say in Helsinki was,

换句话说，特朗普现在宣称他在赫尔辛基要说的是，“没理由不是俄罗斯。”特朗普还表示接受“我们的情报界关于俄罗斯干预2016年大选的结论”。

"I don't see any reason why it wouldn't be Russia."  Trump also said he accepted  "our intelligence community's conclusion that Russian meddling in the 2016 election took place."

Hmm. Can we believe him, particularly after the fawning admiration he has shown for Putin — before and during the Helsinki meetup?

但是，我们可以相信他吗？尤其是在他为普京所展示出那样的敬佩之后？ 

We'll see whether this sorry episode has lasting repercussions for American diplomacy.

我们将看到这个令人遗憾的事件是否会对美国的外交产生持久的影响。

For most world leaders, a blunder and walk-back of this magnitude would deal a crushing blow to their credibility.

对大多数世界领导人来说，如此大规模的错误和退步将给他们的信誉带来沉重打击。

But that may not happen here: Trump and truthfulness are already estranged.

但这不会发生在这里：特朗普和事实真相已经相形渐远了。