logrolling
[lawg-roh-ling, log-]
- U.S. Politics. the exchange of support or favors, especially by legislators for mutual political gain as by voting for each other's bills.
- cronyism or mutual favoritism among writers, editors, or critics, as in the form of reciprocal flattering reviews; back scratching.
- the action of rolling a log or logs to a particular place.
- the action of rotating a log rapidly in the water by treading upon it, especially as a competitive sport; birling.
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Origin of logrolling
logroll
[lawg-rohl, log-]U.S. Politics.
- to procure the passage of (a bill) by logrolling.
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- to engage in political logrolling.
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Origin of logroll
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for logrolling
Historical Examples
These appropriations are secured by what you call in America ‘logrolling.’
The Land of the KangarooThomas Wallace Knox
The state capital was moved to Springfield as a part of the give and take of logrolling.
Children of the Market PlaceEdgar Lee Masters
logrolling
- US the practice of undemocratic agreements between politicians involving mutual favours, the trading of votes, etc
- another name for birlingSee birl 1
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logroll
- mainly US to use logrolling in order to procure the passage of (legislation)
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for logrolling
n.
also log-rolling, in the legislative vote-trading sense, 1823, American English, from the notion of neighbors on the frontier helping one another with the heavy work of clearing land and building cabins (as in phrase you roll my log and I'll roll yours); see log (n.1) + rolling.
LOG-ROLLING. 1. In the lumber regions of Maine it is customary for men of different logging camps to appoint days for helping each other in rolling the logs to the river, after they are felled and trimmed -- this rolling being about the hardest work incident to the business. Thus the men of three or four camps will unite, say on Monday, to roll for camp No. 1, -- on Tuesday for camp No. 2, -- on Wednesday for camp No. 3, -- and so on, through the whole number of camps within convenient distance of each other. [Bartlett]
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
logrolling
In politics, advance agreement by legislators to vote for one another's bills. Logrolling is most common when legislators are trying to secure votes for bills that will benefit their home districts. For example, a group of congressmen from the Middle West pushing for higher dairy prices and a group of southern congressmen supporting higher tobacco prices might make a logrolling agreement in order to get both bills passed.
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The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.