科米的规则

2017年6月8日，美国联邦调查局(FBI)前局长科米在参议院情报委员会听证会上作证，直斥白宫“充斥着谎言和诋毁”。“维基解密”始创人阿桑奇揶揄科米，称他是“情报界的艳星”。中央情报局(CIA)前特工斯诺登则为科米辩护，称泄密有时“无可厚非”。

他还在洛克希德马丁公司这个著名军火商处供职过，所欲美国政客的双手沾满人民的献血不是假话。

我能认出的华盛顿地标很可能已经超过家乡武汉，见到白宫国会山的次数比水塔黄鹤楼更多。Showtime频道刚刚播出的剧集《科米的规则》(The Comey Rule)中的场景基本上都安排在华盛顿，每一处都不陌生，但我无法摆脱困惑。这部剧根据联邦调查局FBI前局长科米的回忆录改编，扮演他的是Jeff Daniels，一位敢于在话剧《杀死一只知更鸟》中出场、与不朽的格里高利·派克形象竞争的演员。纷乱来自剧集中新闻片段和虚构场景的结合，白宫发言人Sean Spicer和Sarah Huckbee Sanders是真人，但科米、他的老板特朗普和司法部长Sessions、副手和下级等却由演员担纲。扮演副手、紧接科米之后出任FBI代理局长的Andrew McCabe由一位极为熟悉的演员出演—《纸牌屋》中主角弗兰克忠心耿耿的助手道格·斯坦普，另外还要加上《绝命毒师》中的Jonathan Banks。观看过程中陷入经常性的挣扎，我在看新闻、《纸牌屋》、《绝命毒师》还是《科米的规则》？我身在《纸牌屋》中的华盛顿、《科米的规则》中的美国首都、还是现实中的哥伦比亚特区？

科米和McCabe的回忆录我都翻过，掌握基本剧情并不特别困难。科米具有崇高的职业感，坚信FBI在美国社会中的支柱功能，竭力保持与总统的距离以维系执法独立性，北京的公安部长不太可能具备相似的思路。同时现实中的他又追求舞台效果，集劳模与扮演劳模的演员于一身，这是看剧时无法理清的另一个纷乱。4年前科米制造的“十月惊奇”对选举结果无疑造成重大影响，但到底帮助了特朗普还是希拉里，目前最强大的电脑算法也不可能提供答案。

结尾的时候，Jeff Daniels扮演的科米与妻子走出了宾夕法尼亚大道上的餐厅“首都烧烤”(The Captal Grille)，此处离我们办公室也就10来分钟步行距离。我当然不可能花50美元在那里吃一份牛排，太奢侈，但前疫情时代每年都会有“餐馆周”，20美元就可以要一份包括沙拉、牛排和甜点的套餐。问题在于，疫情爆发半年多来我极少再进城，也不知道餐厅还有没有继续营业。

导演在剧集里面一面极力给观众展现中立性，给观众自己评判意图，一边又巧妙用科米每次和特朗普新政府内阁成员会面时，对方都会介绍一下特大大室内装饰很有品味和水平的含意是佩服之至。回头再看看自家这些圈养的导演们猴年马月才有这样水准，这样不显山漏水的嘲讽，我不相信那些沈茶们能看懂啊！圈养里面或许有它们不敢，当然还有种可能就是完全不看圈养们拍的。

倘若你曾在剧中所涉时段一直密追Trump这出真人秀，那么这两集共3小时的短剧内容应早已熟稔。观剧却能获得更多惊喜：主要是选角在外形上太像了！Kushner的角色简直怀疑是他本人在本色出演；Sessions、Priebus和Flynn都能看到明显像的点；Yates、McCabe、Clapper选角则在熟面孔的老演员身上找到令人叫绝的新相似。甚至Bannon扮演者，台词都没有，近看也不算很像，远看真的是像到无需介绍可以一眼认出。就连Mueller这样的外星人面孔，都找到了颇为传神的演员！（Obama不太像，但语气明显修炼过。）

最大挑战当然是Trump，大家对他都太熟悉。好在作为媒体人物的他，特点也很鲜明。Gleeson的诠释可以说是效果不错的。何况对Trump的呈现颇具巧思——他获得了电影《Valkyrie》中希特勒的待遇：出场先给暗光追镜背影。配上佳丽在侧，氛围立刻拉满，你都能在突然浓稠的空气中闻到罪恶的味道。（Gleeson发量还是有点嫌多。）

Comey的选角Jeff Daniels则明显比真人形象友善。Comey本人更瘦，面部线条也更凌厉。毕竟得过癌症就是不一样啊！Daniels表情台词没大问题，但还是让人感觉更像Daniels，温厚无害，刚和乔布斯谈完入伙的事就来了。三个小时看他晃来晃去，其实提升了Comey的公众形象。

Trump & Comey

剧本改编自Comey的自传，因此偏向性不言而喻。话说Page和Strzok的床戏是怎么回事，难道Comey当时也在场，因此写进了他的自传中？此二人各自已婚两孩，婚外出轨，且均参加了FBI的通俄门调查和随后独立检察官Mueller的通俄门调查。两人可谓志同道合，通奸之余不忘兴致勃勃在FBI配发的手机上互发大量短信，严重反对Trump和支持Hilary Clinton。官配手机信息本来就不受隐私保护，2017年FBI又对通俄门调查展开调查（背后政治倾向这就很明显了），获取这些短信后不久就有人爆料给纽约时报，引来国会议员要求调取这些短信。你也知道国会议员的党派属性，这批短信进了八面透风的国会之后很快也就尽人皆知了。Page和Strzok凭借自身的极端愚蠢，在当着全美公众羞辱自己和配偶子女的同时，为Trump对Mueller和FBI的疯狂攻击提供了搀有香艳佐料的炮弹。

Page & Strzok

所以怎么能忘掉你们呢？床戏是一定要加的。两人在短信事件后都提起诉讼，分别针对总检察长和FBI/DOJ。看了看被告抗辩逻辑，觉得胜诉没戏，两人只是拿诉讼打掩护，企图挣回一点公众形象罢了。媒体报道Page竟没离婚，2020年还担任了MSNBC的电视评论员。

所以朋友你看，剧评先要评剧，再评历史和现实。急屎急尿可还行？纵有Daniels晃来晃去，大选前夕Comey宣布重启邮件门那一幕还是唤回旧怒火。犹记当年见到这breaking news的第一感觉：Hilary Clinton就此完蛋了。受够了的中间选民已在distasteful边缘，这一暴击的效果无法挽回。

2017年1月，初任职的Trump尝试争取Comey当马仔，当众青眼有加。这是剧中此一幕所对应的真实照片。

剧中转译其自传中的解释，本文认为并不成立。宣布重启是因为更早时声明不起诉（所以要有始有终）；而当初违背旧例而声明不起诉则是为了维护机构声誉。然而在大选前夕宣布重启难道不恰恰是极大的损毁了机构声誉么？自视为圣徒，对自身的巨大盲点毫无自知之明，理由崇高而结果是灾难，巧的是同时也常常给自己带来头条。Comey神人共弃的结局警告我们，不要陶醉于自身充沛的道德感；强原则性也易骄纵傲慢、短视和私利，从而构成一种并不罕见的道貌岸然。

Comey、Hilary Clinton and the NDC: YOU DESERVE TRUMP.

至于剧中颇加描画的金色淋浴，Fox在2021年报道其信息源是一个乌克兰裔美国居民，所供职的研究机构头目是Hilary Clinton的长期朋友兼同盟。此人已因向FBI撒谎而被美国政府起诉。他供认金色淋浴不过是俄国酒友电话里的流言，他拿来和Steele换钱，后者则对这些流言照单全收。

时间快进到2020年8月，Biden已选择Kamala做竞选伙伴。Comey在社交网路发了张自拍，穿着印有“Elect More Women”字样的T恤衫。

Hilary Clinton的助手很快回了一条：

A lot of us tried. You f---ed it up. But the tee shirt definitely makes up for it.

哈！

联邦调查局属于司法部，司法部属于总统，那么联邦调查局的独立性肯定会受到影响。

一般的办案可能影响不大，但是涉及选举，那就真的是考验人心而不是制度了。

科米是个职业官僚，而不是政治家，所以他处事比较简单，可说是办案专业主义，面对特朗普的效忠，只有扫地出门一条路。

但是如果他真的孝忠了，那么联邦调查局也就完蛋了，完全可以睁一只眼闭一只眼。

美国的制度也是很脆弱的，很多时候靠的是人心。

制度失灵，会有告密者，会有吹哨人，会有媒体，议员，反对党的监督。

所以，人心不足，制度来凑，新闻制度，国会制度，如果最后都失灵了，还有弹劾制度，最高法院制度。

制度不足，人心支撑。背后就是美国一统的价值观，简简单单。

除非这种价值观开始撕裂，开始变成两种互相争斗的价值观，人心思变，于是制度也不可靠了，选举人制度要改，最高法院任期要改，总统辩论要改......

没有一个国家可以长盛不衰。

Where law ends, tyranny begins.

In governance there are people who do the work, and there are showboats.

Politicians are awful.

Money is nice, stopping bad guys is better.

If you’re not happy, leave. There’s plenty of people that want your job.

You can’t run this place if you mind being resented.

If you’ve been doing this for ten years, and a president asks you to stay on for another two, say no.

I expect you to work hard because you owe that to the taxpayer. I expect you to exercise good judgment. Being here means you have the power to do good, or, if you abuse that power, great harm. I expect you to find joy in your work. You are part of an organization devoted to doing good, protecting the weak, rescuing the taken, and catching criminals. That is work with moral content. Doing it should be a source of great joy. And I expect you to protect this institution’s reservoir of trust and credibility, which makes possible all of our work. I expect you to fight for balance in your lives. You are all driven by our mission, and you are used to absorbing stress. That means you need more time with your loved ones, not less. So I order you to love someone, It’s the right thing to do. It’s also good for you. Crime in any form makes people feel powerless. Let’s fix that.

Did she mishandle classified information by using her personal e-mail system while serving as Secretary of State ? We’re looking for “corrupt purpose.” Did Secretary Clinton knowingly break the law either by using a personal e-mail server to handle classified information while serving at State, or by directing the deletion of e-mails from that server ?

Whatever this investigation yields, history will look at what we do here through a microscope, so our work needs to be letter-perfect. No leaks, everything buttoned down. We cannot cut corners, cannot screw this up in any way.

Trump? He’s an idiot. But he’s a man. And male voters are gender-loyal in a way that women aren’t.

The Trump supporters see Trump as political chemo. He may be toxic, he may kill every healthy cell in the bloodstream, but he is the only cure for the cancer that is Washington.

Everyone’s got an opinion, and the right to voice it.

I’d ask you to assess three things: the accuracy of the facts laid out in the draft, any policy or other limitations around making such a statement, and the wisdom and mechanics of presenting it to the American people.

Conventional wisdom might mitigate against it. But this is not a conventional circumstance. What I’m thinking is grand juries are secret for a reason. We don’t comment on the propriety of a subject’s conduct, especially during an election year. If the country ever starts to distrust the Bureau’s intentions, it’s a bell that can never be unrung.

And you remember that next time somebody tells you this country can’t be its best self. Or the law doesn’t matter. That jury did right anyway.

What if we announce and then don’t find anything? What if we don’t announce and then find criminal intent?

Down that road lies the death of the FBI as an independent force in American life. If I ever start considering whose political fortunes might be affected by a decision even for a second, we’re done. I know you believe in telling the truth. But there are all kinds of truths out there. That’s intelligence but it’s a truth. Concealing one truth and publicly announcing another is selective honesty. I told Congress and the country that this case was closed. If that’s revealed to be a lie, how would they ever believe us again?

I think norms and policies matter. And I think Direct Comey believes that his own ethics are now worth more than the norms that have always steered us.

You came here to do good. You’ve all made sacrifices to keep that promise. You stay up late working on a summation to explain why a drug dealer or child pornographer is guilty. You chase materials to organize court exhibits that some yo-yo from the Bureau mislabeled. And you shrug pleasantly when people speak of the “awesome resources of the federal government,” as you eye the fancy supplies at a law firm and think about swiping some stuff to take back to your office. Despite obstacles, you do the work. You protect people. That’s noble. What makes that work possible is a reservoir of trust and credibility, a reservoir that was built for us and filled for us by those who went before us in this work, many of whom we never knew. Our obligation is to protect that reservoir, to keep it full or make it fuller, for those who will follow us into public service. The problem with reservoirs is that it’s hard to fill them and one tiny hole can drain them. And that’s what happens if our vigilance fails, if, even for a second, we ever put anything--politics, partisanship-- above the primacy of truth and justice. I love the Bureau. I love its mission. That guides me every day, in everything I do. And if it leads me to make mistakes, I know they’ll be honest ones.

The boss gets absolute power, absolute loyalty, and no one outside the inner circle counts. My soul should burn if I ever betray Cosa Nostra. Ours is an apolitical culture.

The country needs to know that the FBI is completely divorced from politics.

You ever start to feel shaky, go outside and look at the buildings up and down Pennsylvania Avenue. They’ve been there a long time. And they’re gonna be here a long time. Because what they represent is eternal-- institutions, the rule of law, no matter who is in power.

Law alone can give us freedom.

The job is about protecting people. Every decision comes back to that. Everything the entire department does will run through this office, so you need to be at your best. You need to eat well, exercise, get enough sleep. You need to be with your family to recharge yourself. That goes for all of your staff as well. Try to get out of the office by 6, 6:30 every night, because no one will leave before you do, and you want them spending time with their loved ones.

Workaholics make soulless choices.

Leaders like that throw you back to first principles, you just have to keep remembering what they are.

Every one of you is personally responsible for protecting the American people and upholding the Constitution of the United States. The FBI’s values are bigger than any single person, so it’s the same mission no matter who’s running it.

Because they’ve always been here. Doesn’t matter who the president is, which party is in power. The institutions, the rule of law. Nothing ever knocks them down.