Word of the Day Archives - Page 2 of 2

turkey farm

April 17, 2019 2:08 pm

turkey farm A government agency or department staffed primarily with political appointments and other patronage hires. A Vanderbilt University study notes that “In every administration certain agencies acquire reputations as ‘turkey farms’ or ‘dead pools.’ Positions in these agencies get...

aardvarking

April 16, 2019 10:46 am

aardvarking Recruiting candidates for public office with the main objective of having their names begin with the letter A. GOP consultant Roger Stone: “In the late 1970’s a Republican consultant and I examined a series of races on Long Island when...

deduct box

April 15, 2019 8:30 amApril 15, 2019 1:03 pm

deduct box The locked box where legendary Louisiana Gov. Huey Long kept “deducts” from state employee salaries to fund his political operation. Estimates suggest Long collected between $50,000 to $75,000 each election cycle from government workers. The deduct box was...

running between the raindrops

April 14, 2019 2:31 pmApril 15, 2019 1:17 pm

running between the raindrops To dodge or deflect repeated political attacks. “Running between the raindrops” is used to describe actions taken by politicians to avoid political aggression from other candidates or the media. In other circumstances, “running between the raindrops”...

dummymander

April 13, 2019 9:33 pmApril 14, 2019 2:29 pm

dummymander A dummymander is a gerrymander by one party “that, over the course of the decade, benefits the other party, and actually looks as if it was designed by that party rather than the party in power.” The term was coined...