2008年可以说是多事之年，其中美国大选一波三折，经济危机让全球震动。美国《时代》杂志最近评出了2008年度十大尴尬瞬间，其中竟有四件与美国大选有关。

1. Bush dances while waiting for McCain

It was already going to be a delicate moment of political theater — an unpopular president offering a candidate he didn't really like an endorsement the candidate didn't really want. But the situation was made all the more awkward when George W. Bush went to the North Portico steps of the White House in March to welcome new Republican presidential nominee John McCain — and McCain wasn't there. "So, anyway," Bush said to waiting reporters. "As I was saying..." Still no McCain. The president smiled. And then he did a soft-shoe dance. "I'm just going to tap dance the day away," he said. Minutes later, McCain arrived with wife in tow, and the tap-dancing president endorsed the tardy candidate.

第一、布什等麦凯恩不耐烦跳舞打发时间

2008年3月5日，在获得党内提名所需的1191张党代表票后，美国共和党总统候选人约翰·麦凯恩前往白宫，与总统布什共进午餐，作为布什正式宣布支持他的前奏。但布什却被麦凯恩晾在白宫北门等了好一会儿。早早来到白宫北门的布什左等右等麦凯恩不到，为了调节气氛，竟然在众位记者面前独自跳起踢跶舞来。

2. Greenspan "shocked" to find flaws in his free-market ideology

He used to be known as "The Maestro," for presiding over such a long period of economic growth. But this fall the former Federal Reserve chairman was being blamed for the laissez faire economic policies that contributed to the current financial crisis. In Congressional testimony in October, Alan Greenspan acknowledged that he was "partially" wrong in opposing financial regulation. "Yes, I found a flaw," he said, when grilled about his free-market ideology. "That is precisely the reason I was shocked, because I'd been going for 40 years or more with very considerable evidence that it was working exceptionally well." Also shocked is anyone who plans on retiring before the end of the next geologic era.

第二、格林斯潘震惊自由市场经济有缺陷

前美联储主席格林斯潘令世界经济持续增长，被尊称为“艺术大师”。但是2008年秋，格林斯潘自由放任的经济政策饱受责难，在一定程度上导致了当前的金融危机。在10月举行的美国国会听证会上，格林斯潘承认，自由市场理论“有缺陷” ，无拘无束的自由市场并不一定是良好经济的根基。格林斯潘对这个缺陷感到“震惊”，因为四十多年来，他一直认为有确凿证据证明这种理论的效果非常好。格林斯潘还称，银行自我调节能力的全面崩溃令他“万分震惊，难以置信”。他还提醒人们关注这场危机的经济影响，称“真不知道我们怎么能避免裁员和失业人数大增”。

3. Olympic committee's about-face in Beijing

Olympic etiquette dictates that you don't diss your host country. So in August, when four U.S. cyclists disembarked from their plane in Beijing wearing masks to guard against the city's notorious air pollution, the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) demanded that the athletes apologize to the Chinese. The only problem was that the masks had been provided to the cyclists by the USOC itself. That's right. The USOC forced athletes to apologize for wearing gear it had specifically designed for them and recommended they wear. The cyclists said the negative encounter, which took place three days before the Games started, prevented them from performing their best and earning any medals. In September, the USOC sent a letter to the athletes, acknowledging it had mishandled the situation.

第三、美国运动员戴面罩参加北京奥运

奥运会礼节规定：运动员不能有诋毁东道国的言论或行为。但在2008北京奥运会前，四名美国脚踏车运动员却带着面罩走下飞机，声称是为了避免城市空气污染。对此，美国奥林匹克委员会要求这些运动员向中国人民道歉。但万分尴尬的是，这些面罩恰好是美国奥委会特别为运动员准备的。这些运动员赛后表示，此次事件对他们影响很大，令他们发挥失常，没能赢得任何奖牌。9月，美国奥委会在给运动员信中承认，是他们误导了运动员。

4. The View over use of the N word

Really, is there any better place for probing cultural analysis than daytime television? Tempers flared when the co-hosts of ABC's The View discussed Jesse Jackson's off-air use of the "N-word" while preparing for an appearance on Fox News. Elisabeth Hasselbeck disagreed with Whoopi Goldberg and Sherri Shepherd about the use of the word. Hasselbeck made the case that it's a slur and should never be used, Goldberg that it's OK for African Americans to say it. Then the two women argued about whether they live in the same world, Hasselbeck started to cry and Barbara Walters snapped, "Take a breath, let someone else talk." And the wounds of a nation were healed.

第四、节目主持人直播中争吵

美国广播公司《视角》节目开始前，主持人伊丽莎白·哈瑟尔贝克与乌比·戈德堡，就重量级黑人牧师耶西·杰克逊攻击奥巴马时使用的“贬低黑人用语”发生激烈争论。哈瑟尔贝克认为那是一个污点，杰克逊永远不会再使用。而戈德堡称非洲裔美国人可以使用。然后，两位女性开始争论他们是否生活在同样的世界中。

5. Barack almost forgets to ask donors to help with Hillary's campaign debt

It was supposed to be an opportunity for Barack Obama to soothe the tensions that still simmered between Hillary Clinton's supporters and his own. In July, the senator had secured the Democratic nomination and planned to use a New York City fundraising event to solicit donations to help pay off Clinton's millions of dollars in campaign debt. But Obama gave a 32-minute speech that never mentioned the debt and started walking off to Stevie Wonder's "Signed, Sealed, and Delivered," before realizing his error. Rushing back on stage, Obama said, "Hold on a second, guys! I was getting all carried away!" He then solicited the help, and doubts about whether fences had been mended were put to rest — months later, when Clinton agreed to serve as Obama's secretary of state.

第五、奥巴马演讲中忘记帮希拉里还债

今年7月，奥巴马基本确定能够获得民主党总统候选人的党内提名，并计划利用纽约筹款集会的机会，恳求捐款人帮他还清希拉里欠下的数百万美元的竞选债务。对于奥巴马来说，那是缓和希拉里的支持者与自己关系的一个良机。但是在奥巴马32分钟的演讲中，只字未提希拉里。就在奥巴马要走下台时，突然意识到自己的错误，他又急忙返回台上，奥巴马说：“请大家等一下！”然后，他恳求支持者们慷慨解囊，帮希拉里还债。几个月后，希拉里成为奥巴马的国务卿。