Government Slang, Jargon, and New Words from Double-Tongued Dictionary

Citations in the Category Government

Washington D.C., United Nations, state and local governments, civil service, Federal government, bureaucracy, etc. You can also see entries assigned to this category.

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skintern n. Most of the new interns dressed appropriately, but one young woman wore flip-flops and a “skirt that was way too short."…"One of the boys called them skinterns, which I thought was hilarious. Younger kids are showing their bellies. It’s not good for them in the long run. I’d prefer them to wear clothes.” [English Government Slang] [full cite] (Jul. 29, 2006)

stovepipe n. Mr. Rapport urged Secretary Rumsfeld to bypass traditional procurement bottlenecks and what the industry refers to as “stovepipes” to seek out and avail himself of the capabilities of small defense contractors. [English Business Government] [full cite] (Aug. 1, 2006)

touchback n. On one side are those who believe that progressives should not support federal legislation that offers less than complete and unconditional amnesty for undocumented immigrants. This means no compromises around “guest worker” policies, no mandates that immigrants first return to their native countries before returning as legal US immigrants—a process known as “touchback”—, and no different rules for longtime vs. recently arrived immigrants. [English Government Politics Jargon] [full cite] (Apr. 30, 2007)

touchback n. WELNA: The main idea Republicans are considering is letting some of those here illegally stay, those who’ve been here more than five years, or those who overstayed visas. Florida Republican Mel Martinez said others in the country illegally should at least return to their countries of origin before applying for visas. It’s the so-called touchback provision.…Senator EDWARD KENNEDY (Democrat, Massachusetts): What’s right with taking people that are here for a period of time and then what, do they go across the border and have a bed check and then come back here? [English Government Politics] [full cite] (May. 29, 2007)

touchback n. In addition, undocumented immigrants who have been in the United States for two to five years, no matter where they live, would have to travel back to a port-of-entry on the U.S. border, such as El Paso, Texas, and go back across the border to apply for guest-worker status. Upon performing this so-called touchback, these several million immigrants could immediately return to their U.S. homes. [English Government Politics] [full cite] (May. 29, 2007)

track two diplomacy n. All this was what is sometimes called “Track Two” diplomacy, i.e., quiet sessions out of the headlines. Whatever its results, it is a lot better than future headlines of nuclear catastrophe. [English Government Politics Jargon] [full cite] (Oct. 7, 2006)

transactional lobbying n. Mr. Wilkes had set up separate meetings with the lawmakers hoping to win a government contract, and he planned to punctuate each pitch with a campaign donation. But his hometown congressman, Representative Bill Lowery of San Diego, a Republican, told him that presenting the checks during the sessions was not how things were done, Mr. Wilkes recalled. Instead, Mr. Wilkes said, Mr. Lowery taught him the right way to do it: hand over the envelope in the hallway outside the suite, at least a few feet away. That was the beginning of a career built on what Mr. Wilkes calls “transactional lobbying,” which made him a rich man but also landed him in the middle of a criminal investigation. [English Government Money & Finance Politics Euphemism] [full cite] (Aug. 9, 2006)

twenty-minute takeout n. The “security check” used by the CIA to prepare a detainee for transport on a rendition plane was described to us by one source in the American intelligence community as a “twenty-minute takeout.” His explanation was that within a very short space of time, a detainee is transformed into a state of almost total immobility and sensory deprivation. “The CIA can do three of these guys in an hour. In twenty minutes they’re good to go.” An investigating officer for the Swedish Ombudsman was struck by the “fast and efficient procedure” used by the American agents, while the Swedish interpreter who witnessed the CIA operation at Bromma Airport said simply: “It surprised me how the heck they could have dressed him so fast." [English Government Jargon] [full cite] (May. 22, 2007)

walking quorum n. “Walking” quorums, often called “roaming” quorums, are those times when members of a government body—a city council or school board, for instance—discuss public business outside of public meetings. It’s often in groups fewer than that number needed for an official meeting. [English Government Jargon] [full cite] (Feb. 22, 2008)

Washington Monument ploy n. Cynics suggest the proposed park closings are merely a bargaining tactic, a way to gain leverage in getting the budget passed. There’s even a name for it in political circles: the “Washington Monument ploy.” Politicians announce highly unpopular cuts, and then relent in exchange for other concessions. [English Government Politics] [full cite] (Apr. 14, 2008)

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