Washington Monument Syndrome (Washington Monument Strategy)
The "Washington Monument syndrome" (or "Washinton Monument strategy") is when an agency, faced with budget cuts, decides to cut its most popular programs, making the cuts very…
Waste, Fraud and Abuse (“big three”)
Meg Greenfield (1930-1999), a columnist for Newsweek and the Washington (DC) Post, called waste, fraud and abuse "the dread big three" in a July 1993 column. A March 1982 story by the…
Watermelon (green on the outside, red on the inside)
Environmentalists are sometimes called by the slang name "watermelon" for being green on the outside and red (communist or anti-capitalist) on the inside. The term "watermelon"…
Wave Election (Tidal Wave Election)
A "tidal wave election" in the United States is when one political party wins a large amount of seats. The first "tidal wave election" was in 1874 and favored the Democrats. The…
Waxinate or Waxxinate or Waxxxinate (variant spelling of “vaccinate”)
"Waxinate" or "waxxinate" or waxxinate" are variant spellings of "vaccinate," sometimes for jocular effect and sometimes to get around computer algorithms. The…
Waxination or Waxxination (variant spelling of “vaccination”)
"Waxination" or "waxxination" are variant spellings of "vaccinate," sometimes for jocular effect and sometimes to get around computer algorithms. The spellings became…
Waxxinate or Waxinate or Waxxxinate (variant spelling of “vaccinate”)
"Waxinate" or "waxxinate" or waxxxinate" are variant spellings of "vaccinate," sometimes for jocular effect and sometimes to get around computer algorithms. The…
Waxxination or Waxination (variant spelling of “vaccination”)
"Waxination" or "waxxination" are variant spellings of "vaccinate," sometimes for jocular effect and sometimes to get around computer algorithms. The spellings became…
Waxxxinate or Waxinate or Waxxinate (variant spelling of “vaccinate”)
"Waxinate" or "waxxinate" or waxxxinate" are variant spellings of "vaccinate," sometimes for jocular effect and sometimes to get around computer algorithms. The…
We Hide Outbreaks (World Health Organization or WHO nickname)
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations concerned with public health. Some critics during the 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic claimed that WHO was not…
We Piddle Around (Works Progress Administration or WPA nickname)
The Works Progress Administration (WPA) gave jobs to the unemployed during the Depression. The WPA was nicknamed "We Piddle Around" by at least May 1936. Wikipedia: Works Progress…
Weakly Standard (Weekly Standard nickname)
The Weekly Standard is a conservative opinion weekly magazine that debuted in September 1995. The obvious nickname of The Weakly Standard was applied to the magazine by at least 1998. Another…
Wedge Issue
A "wedge issue" is a controversial issue that creates a "wedge" between certain voters. A 19th century wedge issue was slavery; a 20th century wedge issue was abortion.…
Welfare Wednesday (Food Stamp Friday)
"Welfare Wednesday" describes the Wednesday of a month when welfare checks are sent out. The term is mostly used in Canada (especially in the city of Vancouver), but has also been used in…
Welfare-Warfare State (Warfare-Welfare State)
Entry in progress -- B.P. OCLC WorldCat recordThe new left; a collection of essays.Author: Priscilla LongPublisher: Boston, P. Sargent [1969]Series: Extending horizons booksEdition/Format: Book :…
Welfargee (welfare + refugee)
"Welfargee" (welfare + refugee) describes someone who comes from a third world country to a more developed country and lives off its welfare. "Welfargee" was cited in print in…
Welfarian (someone on welfare)
A "Welfarian" (or "welfarian") is a welfare recipient. "Welfarian" has been cited in print since at least 1978. The term "Welfarian" a high-sounding name…
Whac-A-Mole Season
The end of the session in Albany -- when the state budget is being approved -- is sometimes known as the "Whac-A-Mole" season. Special interest legislation pops up, to be passed through…
Whataboutism
"Whataboutism" is a tactic to deflect criticism by bringing up an alleged defect of the criticizing party. For example, the United States might criticize Russia, only to be told,…
WHINO (whine + RINO)
“RINO" (Republican In Name Only) is a popular political term that has inspired other “in name only” terms. "WHINO" (whine + RINO) was coined by Kevin D. Williamson, who wrote…