Budget Axe (Budget Ax)
A budget is often cut by, metaphorically, "axing" workers and expenses. The budget axe (or "ax") has been cited in print since at least 1911. Budget cutting since 1960 has often…
Bullshit Labor Statistics (Bureau of Labor Statistics or BLS nickname)
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) was established as the Bureau of Labor in 1884. Some of the statistics that it compiles include the consumer price index and unemployment rates. Critics of…
Bully Pulpit
The term "bully pulpit" was coined by Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), as he was leaving his last term in the White House. The term first appears in a February 27, 1909 Outlook profile of…
Bum Rap (undeserved criminal punishment)
A "bum rap" means an undeserved criminal punishment. "Bum" means something of miserable quality; "rap" means a criminal accusation. "Then another fellow told of…
Bungler-in-Chief (an incompetent top executive)
"Bungler-in-chief" (or "bungler in chief") means any incompetent top executive. The term "bungler-in-chief" has been cited in print in 1917, 1967 and 1987, but the…
Bureau of Incompetent Asses (Bureau of Indian Affairs or BIA nickname)
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is an agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior responsible for the administation and management of Native American land in the United States. Critics of the…
Bureau of Land Mismanagement (Bureau of Land Management or BLM nickname)
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) oversees more than 247.3 million acres (1,001,000 km2) of public lands in the United States. Critics of the Bureau of Land Management have nicknamed it the…
Bureau of Large Mistakes (Bureau of Land Management or BLM nickname)
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) oversees more than 247.3 million acres (1,001,000 km2) of public lands in the United States. Critics of the Bureau of Land Management have nicknamed it the…
Bureau of Lies and Statistics (Bureau of Labor Statistics or BLS nickname)
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) was established as the Bureau of Labor in 1884. Some of the statistics that it compiles include the consumer price index and unemployment rates. Critics of…
Bureau of Livestock and Mining (Bureau of Land Management or BLM nickname)
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) oversees more than 247.3 million acres (1,001,000 km2) of public lands in the United States. Some critics have said that the bureau sells out to livestock and…
Bureau of Wrecklamation (Bureau of Reclamation nickname)
The U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation (formerly the U.S. Reclamation Service) has been in charge of water management (including many dam projects) since 1902. Critics…
Bureaucratese or Bureaucrapese (bureaucratic language)
"Bureaucratese" is a language spoken or written by bureaucrats, also often called "officialese" or "legalese" or "federalese" or "governmentese."…
Bureaucrazy (bureaucracy + crazy)
"Bureaucrazy" (bureaucracy + crazy) has been used when people feel that government red tape is overwhelming, creating a bureaucracy-crazy environment. The word "bureaucrazy" has…
Bureaustan (bureau + -stan)
"Bureaustan” (bureau + -stan, such as Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) means a location that is run by an all-powerful bureau.…
Bureauweenie (bureaucrat + weenie)
A "bureauweenie" (bureaucrat + weenie) is an unflattering name for a bureaucrat, with "weenie" meaning someone who is weak and unimportant. The term is usually given in plural…
Cadillac Health Plan (Cadillac Tax)
A Cadillac car (produced since 1902) has stood for excellence for many years. A "Cadillac" health plan is a plan that has little or no exclusions (such as for pre-existing conditions).…
Caesarism
While the United States presidency had long had no formal term limits, it was generally respected that no president would serve longer than the two terms served by the first president, George…
Camel’s Nose
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: Camel's nose The camel's nose is a metaphor for a situation where permitting some small undesirable situation will allow gradual and unavoidable…
Can’t Do Crap (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or CDC nickname)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is, according to Wikipedia, the leading national public health institute of the United States. Some people, however, believe that the CDC is…
Capitalism’s International Army (Central Intelligence Agency or CIA nickname)
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is the successor to World War II’s Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Some critics claim that the CIA mainly protects business interests. The CIA has been…