honest graft
Taking advantage of the money-making opportunities that might arise while holding public office. Tammany Hall boss George Washington Plunkitt defined “dishonest graft” as actual theft from the public treasury or taking bribes for making certain public decisions. “Honest graft,” however, simply meant pursuing the public interest and one’s personal interests at the same time. For [...]
thrown under the bus
To sacrifice someone, typically one who is undeserving, in order to make political gain. Newsweek: “In general, ‘thrown under the bus’ is a metaphor for what happens when someone takes a hit for someone else’s actions. But unlike its etymological cousins, ‘scapegoat’ and ‘fall guy,’ the phrase suggests a degree of intimacy between the blamer [...]
political suicide
An unpopular action that is likely to cause a politician’s subsequent defeat at the polls or be cause for him or her to resign from public office. However, as William Safire notes in Safire’s Political Dictionary, “these suicides, like the report of Mark Twain’s death, are usually exaggerations. Actions unpopular on their face can be [...]
carpetbagger
The name Southerners used to describe Northerners who moved to the South during the Reconstruction era, between 1865 and 1877. The term comes from the Carpetbags — luggage literally made from the pieces of old carpet — that were used by travelers during this period. Anyone with a Carpetbag was easily identified as an outsider. [...]
inside baseball
The intricate knowledge of a process not normally known to the public and only of interest to insiders. William Safire: “From its sports context comes its political or professional denotation: minutiae savored by the cognoscenti, delicious details, nuances discussed and dissected by aficionados. In politics, candidates who say they want to discuss larger issues look [...]
recall election
A recall election is a procedure by which voters can remove an elected official from office through a direct vote, typically initiated when enough voters sign a petition. Only two governors have ever been successfully recalled. In 1921, Gov. Lynn Frazier of North Dakota was recalled during a dispute about state-owned industries, and in 2003, [...]
demagogue
A politician whose rhetoric appeals to raw emotions such as fear and hatred in order to gain power. Former Sen. Joseph McCarthy (R-WI) is often cited as a classic demagogue for his practice in the 1950s of smearing prominent Americans with baseless accusations being Communists.