self-licking ice cream cone
n.— «The “self-licking ice cream cone” that is the Congress of the United States prevents the closure of redundant factories and is satisfied by minor reforms, such as procuring a few items “off the shelf.”» —by Stephen B. Wickman in National War College The Emotional Base Of America’s Military-Industrial Complex (Washington, D.C.) Apr. 24, 2003. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
Trivia time! Where in the United States can you visit Soda City? If you answered Columbia, South Carolina, you’re right! This nickname apparently derives from an old practice of abbreviating Columbia as Cola. The locals then referred to the town as...
If you speak a second or third language, you may remember the first time you dreamed in that new tongue. But does this milestone mean you’re actually fluent? And a couple’s dispute over the word regret: Say you wish you’d been able...