川普在期中選舉前加強起訴非公民投票案件

安德魯・古茲沃德與湯姆・哈爾斯報導By Andrew Goudsward and Tom Hals

華盛頓，9月23日（路透社）—— 美國總統川普（Donald Trump）政府正在加強刑事起訴被控在美國選舉中投票的非公民；川普則在11月期中選舉前持續主張選舉舞弊普遍存在。WASHINGTON, Sept 23 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s administration is ramping up criminal prosecutions of noncitizens accused of voting in US elections as he presses claims of widespread election fraud ahead of the November midterms.

路透社檢視法院紀錄與政府聲明發現，美國司法部本月已依一項將「外國人投票」列為犯罪的法律，對約20人提出刑事指控；這約占該法30年前制定以來所有相關起訴案件的13%。The US Justice Department has brought criminal charges against about 20 people this month under a law criminalizing “voting by aliens”, roughly 13% of all prosecutions brought under the statute since it was enacted three decades ago, according to a Reuters review of court records and government statements.

美國國土安全部的調查部門已動員全美50州數百名探員，協助推動一名司法部官員所稱「司法部長與白宮的一級優先事項」。The investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security has mobilized hundreds of agents in all 50 states to aid what a Justice Department official described as a “tier-one priority for the attorney general and for the White House.”

這名官員因討論調查細節而要求匿名。他表示，在11月3日期中選舉前的幾週，起訴速度可能會加快；這場選舉將決定美國參議院與眾議院的控制權。The official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss details of the investigations, said the pace of prosecutions would likely increase in the weeks leading up to the November 3 midterms, which will determine control of the US Senate and House of Representatives.

儘管研究顯示非美國公民投票的情況罕見，近期一波案件仍是川普政府長期嘗試的一部分，意在證明此事對選舉安全構成重大威脅。The spate of recent cases is part of a long-running attempt by the Trump administration to demonstrate that voting by non-US citizens poses a major threat to the security of elections, despite studies showing the practice is rare.

川普與他的支持者表示，這是民主黨人主導的有組織陰謀的一部分，民主黨人希望奪回國會。川普正推動國會共和黨人收緊投票資格要求。Trump and his supporters say it is part of an organized conspiracy led by Democrats who hope to retake Congress. Trump is pushing Republicans in Congress to toughen up voting requirements.

政府批評者指稱，這些說法旨在削弱民眾對投票的信心，並可能為挑戰選舉結果鋪路；民調顯示，川普所屬的共和黨可能在11月面臨重大挫敗。Critics of the administration allege the claims are aimed at diminishing confidence in the vote and potentially laying the groundwork to challenge election results, with polls showing Trump’s Republican Party could face significant losses in November.

內華達州州務卿、民主黨人法蘭西斯科・阿吉拉爾（Francisco Aguilar）告訴路透社，關於非公民投票的言論「正在一點一滴侵蝕公眾的信任」。The rhetoric about noncitizen voting is "little by little eroding the trust of the public,” Nevada Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar, a Democrat, told Reuters.

川普政府官員則指向近期案件，反駁民主黨人的批評。Trump administration officials have pointed to the recent cases to push back against Democratic criticism.

代理副司法部長特倫特・麥考特（Trent McCotter）週二對記者表示：「另一邊的人，也就是總統的反對者，堅稱這種事從未發生。當我們光是在過去幾週就提出數十起案件時，我認為這會削弱並推翻他們的說法。」“The folks on the other side, the opponents of the president, insist this never happens,” acting Deputy Attorney General Trent McCotter told reporters on Tuesday. “When you have dozens of cases that we brought just in the last few weeks, I think that discourages and defeats their characterization.”

路透社7月發布的一項檢視發現，在川普第二任期之前，聯邦層級針對非公民投票指控的起訴極為少見。許多被告是合法永久居民，而近期案件延續了這一趨勢。A Reuters review published in July found that prior to Trump’s second term, federal prosecutions for alleged noncitizen voting were extremely uncommon. Many defendants were lawful permanent residents, a trend that has continued in the recent cases.

路透社週三發布的另一項檢視發現，自2000年以來，各州在處理駕照與州身分證申請時，可能因軟體故障與文書錯誤，將逾3萬名自行申報為非公民者加入全國選民名冊。A separate Reuters review published on Wednesday found states may have added more than 30,000 self-declared noncitizens to the nation’s voter rolls since 2000 because of software glitches and clerical errors made while processing their driver's license and state ID applications.

司法部近幾週提出的案件指稱，被告明知自己不是美國公民，仍在近期選舉中登記投票或投下選票。近期起訴案件增加，但相較於聯邦選舉中數以千萬計的投票數，仍只占一小部分。Cases brought by the DOJ in recent weeks allege that defendants registered to vote or cast ballots in recent elections despite knowing they were not US citizens. The recent uptick in prosecutions represents a small fraction of the tens of millions of ballots cast in federal elections.

美國國土安全部負責刑事調查的單位「國土安全調查處」（Homeland Security Investigations，HSI）一名官員表示，HSI目前有1600件與此議題相關的進行中調查。An official with Homeland Security Investigations, the DHS unit that conducts criminal investigations, said HSI has 1,600 open investigations related to the issue.

協調行動A COORDINATED EFFORT

司法部發言人表示，過去4週內，司法部已對32人提出非公民投票及相關罪名指控。The Justice Department has brought charges against 32 people in the last four weeks for noncitizen voting and related offenses, according to a DOJ spokesperson.

其中7起案件由德州北區聯邦檢察官辦公室提出，當地聯邦檢察官獲得德州總檢察長肯・帕克斯頓（Ken Paxton）辦公室協助；帕克斯頓是美國參議員的共和黨提名人，也是川普盟友。Seven of those cases were brought by the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas, where federal prosecutors received help from the office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee for the US Senate and a Trump ally.

一名聽取相關談話簡報的消息人士表示，司法部一名高層官員本月告訴全美各地聯邦檢察官辦公室的資深檢察官，檢察官不得再自行決定拒辦選舉舞弊案件；這是推動提起案件的壓力之一例。In one example of the pressure to bring cases, a top DOJ official told senior prosecutors at US attorney’s offices across the country this month that prosecutors could no longer decide on their own to refuse election fraud cases, according to a source briefed on the conversation.

這名消息人士說，如果聯邦調查局（FBI）或國土安全部探員認為證據足以提出指控，由政治任命人員任職的副司法部長辦公室將擁有最終決定權。The deputy attorney general's office, staffed by political appointees, would have the final say if agents with the FBI or DHS felt the evidence warranted charges, the source said.

消息人士表示，這項指令讓電話會議上一些人感到不安，因為傳統上在這類案件中，是否有理由起訴是由職業檢察官決定。MS NOW率先報導了這場會議的細節。The directive unnerved some on the call given it has traditionally been career prosecutors who decide whether charges are justified in such cases, according to the source. MS NOW first reported details of the meeting.

一名司法部官員表示，副司法部長辦公室不會在每一起檢察官認為不應起訴的案件中介入，但稱司法部領導層將調解檢察官與探員之間的爭議。A DOJ official said the deputy attorney general's office would not intervene in every case where prosecutors think charges are not warranted, but said department leadership would mediate disputes between prosecutors and agents.

（安德魯・古茲沃德與湯姆・哈爾斯報導；丹・羅森茨威格-齊夫與大衛・摩根補充報導；羅斯・科爾文與丹尼爾・沃利斯編輯）(Reporting by Andrew Goudsward and Tom Hals; Additional reporting by Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff and David Morgan; Editing by Ross Colvin and Daniel Wallis)