Up or Down Vote (thumbs up or thumbs down)
An "up or down vote" is a straight "yea or nay" vote on an amendment or a bill. An "up or down vote" can also be called a "clean vote," although that usually…
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Clean Vote
A "clean vote" is a straight "up-or-down" ("yea-or-nay") vote on an issue. Sometimes a bill is blocked by Congressional procedures, or amendments are added to a bill,…
Caucus
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: CaucusA caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, especially in the United States and Canada. As the use of the term has…
Origin of “Hawkeye” (Iowa nickname)
A person from Iowa is called a "Hawkeye" and Iowa is called the "Hawkeye State." The name "Hawkeye" was popularized by author James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851), who…
Origin of “Boomer”/“Sooner” (Oklahoma nickname) - summary
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: SoonersSooners is the name given to settlers in the midwest of the United States who entered the Unassigned Lands in what is now the state of Oklahoma before…
“Wine is bottled poetry” (“Wine is poetry in a bottle”)
Scottish novelist and poet Robert Louis Stevenson visited Caliornia's Napa Valley and spoke to its wine growers in 1880, resulting in the travel memoir The Silverado Squatters (1883).…
“Golfer’s Diet: Live on greens as much as possible”
"Golfer's Diet: Live on greens as much as possible" is a joke that has been cited in print since at least 1936. In the widely reprinted joke, a wife tells her husband that he's…
“The difference between golf and government is that in golf you can’t improve your lie”
"The difference between golf and government is that in golf you can't improve your lie" is a joke that plays on the meanings of "lie" ("to not tell the truth" or…
“Get big, get niche or get out” (business adage)
"Get big, get niche or get out" is a popular saying in the information technology (IT) industry, particularly in the UK. The saying means that a business can survive by "getting…
“Water separates the people of the world, wine unites them”
"Water separates the people of the world, wine unites them" (or, "wine brings them/people together") is a saying of unknown origin that has been cited in print since at least…
“Hear it now, watch it tonight, read about it tomorrow” (radio-television-newspaper adage)
"Hear it now/today, see/watch it tonight, read (about) it tomorrow" was a popular radio saying. Radio allowed people to "hear it now/today," or people could "see/watch it…
“Dieting is the triumph of mind over platter”
"Dieting is the triumph of mind over platter" is a pun on "mind over matter." The old diet joke has been cited in print since at least 1933-34. 1 June 1933, Riverside (CA) Daily…
Gasoline-on-a-Stick (Texas trees and wildfires)
Texas trees have been called "gasoline-on-a-stick" because of the potential of trees to spread wildfires. In 2011, cedar trees in central Texas were dubbed "gasoline-on-a-stick"…
“If you are going to try cross-country skiing, start with a small country”
"If you are going to try cross-country skiing, start with a small country" is a joke featured in many sports and exercise joke lists, often incorrectly attributed to comedian Steven…
“Condense soup, not books”
"Condense soup, not books" is a slogan that has been used on gift items such as T-shirts and bumper stickers. John T. Dorrance (1873-1930) of the Campbell's Soup Company invented…
Dijon Vu (dijon mustard + deja vu)
"Dijon vu" (dijon mustard + deja vu) is a jocular formation meaning "the same mustard as before." The term "dijon vu" has been infrequently used and is rarely spoken,…
“Democracy is mob rule (but with income taxes)”
"Democracy is mob rule" was not said by the founding fathers of the United States, although they did make similar critical comments about pure democracy. "Democracy is nothing more…
“It’s not hard to meet expenses—they’re everywhere”
"It's not hard to meet expenses -- they're everywhere" is a joke on the double meaning of the word "meet" ("to see" expenses and "to satisfy"…
“I’m having an out-of-money experience”
"I'm having an out-of-money experience" (a pun on "out-of-body" experience) is a popular expression on gift items such as T-shirts and bumper stickers. "I'm…
“Indecision is the key to flexibility”
"Indecision is the key to flexibiity" (less often given as "Flexibility is the key to indecision") has been featured on gift items such as T-shirts. The saying humorously…