Nonetheless, Mormons have developed a unique brand of conservatism. Last year the church helped pass a law that prohibited discrimination in housing and employment on the basis of sexuality. Utah has accepted over 60,000 refugees since the end of the Vietnam war; in recent years it has had one of America’s highest refugee-resettlement rates. Yet the Mormon aspiration to “secure to each individual the free exercise of conscience, the right and control of property, and the protection of life”, plus the emphasis on each individual being responsible for their own fortune, have kept them in the Republican fold.
尽管如此,摩门教徒已经成为一种独特的保守力量。去年,摩门教会促使犹他州颁布了一项法律,禁止住房和雇佣方面的性别歧视。越战结束至今,犹他州接收了6万多名难民,是美国近年来接收难民比率最高的州。然而,摩门教徒“确保每个人都享有信仰自由、财产权和生命权”的信条,以及强调个人掌控命运的态度,使他们并未脱离共和党的行列。
Mr Trump’s relatively weak showing in Utah is partly explained by the strength of the state’s economy. Utah’s unemployment rate is only 3.4%, 1.6 points below the national average. The poverty rate is 2.3 points below the nationwide mark, and incomes are more equal than in any other state. But it mostly reflects Mormon values, which include decency, kindness and humility. The emergence earlier this month of an 11-year-old tape, which showed Mr Trump bragging that he could grope women and get away with it, caused several prominent Utah Republicans, including the state’s governor, Gary Herbert, to drop their support. Jon Huntsman, a former governor who had surprised many by endorsing the Republican nominee, went a step further and urged him to drop out of the race. And the Deseret News, a newspaper owned by the Mormon church, broke an 80-year tradition of neutrality to implore Mr Trump to quit.
犹他经济发展的高水平可以部分解释特朗普在该州表现相对较弱的原因。犹他州的失业率仅为3.4%,比全国平均水平低1.6个百分点。贫困率为2.3%,也低于全国平均水平,而且收入分配较其他州都更为公平。但(特朗普在犹他州相对较弱)最根本的是凸显了摩门教的品质,包括正直,善良和谦卑等。本月早些时候曝光的一份11年前的录音中,特朗普吹嘘自己曾经玩弄女性而且没有受到任何惩罚。这使得包括州长加里·赫伯特在内的一些犹他州知名共和党人,放弃了对特朗普的支持。一直为共和党提名人背书的前州长洪博培,则更进一步敦促特朗普退出竞选。摩门教会的《犹他新闻报》也打破80年来一贯坚持的中立态度,呼吁特朗普辞职。