fifth column
A treasonous group who secretly undermine a nation from within. The term was coined by the Nationalist General Emilio Mola Vidal during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). As four of his army columns moved on Madrid, he referred to his militant supporters within the capital as a “fifth column,” who weakened the loyalist government with [...]
military industrial complex
The comfortable relationship between the military, the federal government and the defense contractors that produce weapons and equipment for war. The term was immortalized by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in his farewell address to the nation on January 17, 1961. In the speech, Eisenhower cites the military-industrial complex as a warning to the American people [...]