拜登自传速读PromisesToKeep(12)

同一位共和党人自1946年以来一直控制着特拉华州在美国参议院的一个席位。为了在这个州获得更多的影响力，民主党决定必须找到一个挑战者来击败他。还有谁能比正在崛起的乔·拜登更出色，他以其进步的环境政策引起了如此大的轰动。
Biden was flabbergastedat being asked to run. After all, he was only 29 and just beginning his political career. But with the support of Neilia and his family, he decided to take it on. Valerie Biden was once again put in charge of the campaign, his younger brother took on fundraising, and Neilia was a constant ally.
被要求参选，拜登感到震惊。毕竟，他才29岁，才刚刚开始他的政治生涯。但在尼莉亚和家人的支持下，他决定接受这项任务。瓦莱丽·拜登再次被任命为竞选负责人，他的弟弟负责筹款，而尼莉亚则是他的忠实盟友。
From the start, theirs was an underdogcampaign. They had no money, and funders weren"t willing to invest in a candidate they were sure would lose. After all, no one had beaten the Republican incumbent for nearly three decades! Why did this young upstart think that he could?
从一开始，他们的竞选就处于劣势。他们没有钱，资助者也不愿意投资给肯定会失败的候选人。毕竟，近三十年来，没有人能击败共和党现任参议员！为什么这个年轻的政治新贵可以？
But Biden and his family used their apparent weaknesses, and turned them into strengths. When they couldn"t afford to mail out literature, they recruited a network of volunteers to do deliveries, helping to increase engagement in the campaign. Instead of courtingjournalists and chasing publicity, they focused on small community events. Biden would host up to ten coffee meetings a day in people"s living rooms, chatting with voters and answering questions in a relaxed, intimate setting.