“Bed-wetting” refers to someone who expresses doubt or excessive worry about a political outcome.
David Plouffe, President Barack Obama’s former campaign manager and top political adviser, first coined the term in 2008 when Democrats began openly fretting about their political challenges, ABC News reports.
It may not be a pleasant image, but that’s the phrase used inside Obamaworld when Democrats start worrying about their political fortunes.
Plouffe used the term again before the 2010 midterm elections in a Washington Post op-ed when he urged “no bed-wetting” among Democrats:
This will be a tough election for our party and for many Republican incumbents as well. Instead of fearing what may happen, let’s prove that we have more than just the brains to govern — that we have the guts to govern.