tombstoning
n.— «Sen. Gloria Romero had one demand if she was going to let legislation to provide mayoral control of the Los Angeles schools get out of the Senate last year. It had to have her name on it. And so the Legislature passed the “Gloria Romero Educational Reform Act of 2006,” giving Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa greater control over the city’s schools—even though Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez, D-Los Angeles, was the author of the bill. Such “tombstoning” of laws, as it’s called in the Capitol, is but one example of the behind-the-scenes jockeying legislators do to keep their names in the spotlight.» —“Capitol goal: Top billing” by Shane Goldmacher Sacramento Bee (California) Feb. 13, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
What kind of book do people ask for most often in prison? Romance novels? No. The Bible? No. The most requested books by far are … dictionaries! A number of volunteer organizations gather and distribute used dictionaries to help inmates with...
Many of us struggled with the Old English poem “Beowulf” in high school. But what if you could actually hear “Beowulf” in the English of today? There’s a new translation by Maria Dahvana Headley that uses contemporary...