The four-month gap between the election and inauguration used to be necessary in the early days of the country to give new presidents time to uproot their lives and move to the nation's capital. A lame person could be someone who has poor social skills. That amendment – nicknamed the 'Lame Duck Amendment,' according to the National Archives –was ratified in 1933 and moved up the inauguration and start of a new Congress.īefore the 20th Amendment, the presidential inauguration was held in early March, the archives report. A very subjective term, usually describing someone who goes against someones way of thinking. The gap between election and inauguration is much shorter now than it used to be, thanks to the 20th Amendment of the Constitution. A 2015 Atlantic report called it ' offensive to both humans and, we can reasonably assume, the entire waterfowl community.' Writing about President Barack Obama's final days, the magazine argued the term undersells how effective 'lame duck' presidents can be when freed from concerns about reelection. Over time, it became more commonly used as the political term and is now so widely accepted that it has its own Merriam Webster entry. Hence, they are informally called 'lame duck' members participating in a 'lame duck' session.' 2 : lacking needful or desirable substance : weak, ineffectual a lame excuse. b : marked by stiffness and soreness a lame shoulder. The Senate recognizes the term and defines a ''lame duck' session' as one that occurs after a November general election and before a new Congress takes power in January: 'Some lawmakers who return for this session will not be in the next Congress. (Entry 1 of 5) 1 a : having a body part and especially a limb so disabled as to impair freedom of movement The accident left him lame for life. Other officeholders can also be called 'lame ducks.' Here are a few things to know about the term: Are only presidents called a 'lame duck'? However, lame-duck presidents have been known to use this period to exercise some of their powers – such as the presidential pardon – with less concern about public opinion. Typically, this decreases the power of the 'lame duck' officeholder as attention shifts to the politician's incoming replacement. 'Lame duck' refers to a politician who remains in power but will soon be replaced by a newly elected successor. One had bolted having kicked and lamed one of the verderers who had tried to hold it.President Donald Trump has not conceded the 2020 election to Joe Biden, but he's heading into the lame-duck period of his presidency based on voting projections.It was Crane who had been lamed and the question arose how they were to use the horses.→ See Verb table Examples from the Corpus lame lame lame 2 verb INJURE to make a person or animal unable to walk properly SYN cripple He was lamed in the accident. The door is falling off its hinges a sheet of plastic makes a lame attempt to keep out the wind.I don't want to hear any of your lame excuses for being late.She's always got some lame excuse for being late. Lame is probably most often used to mean generally weak or pathetic but many people consider this usage to be offensive as well.It may be desirable to spend what could otherwise be dole money on temporarily subsidizing lame ducks to ease the transition.And while that makes him a lame duck, he still has his veto pen and his bully pulpit.It sounded lame but I really had lost my ticket.Movement is always hard to assess at this age, but avoid any puppy who moves erratically or is obviously lame!.In Lexington's case her parents and grandparents had good hips and she is not lame.the company’s lame performance - lameness noun Examples from the Corpus lame a lame attempt to deflect criticism → lamely 3 informal boring or not very good SYN poor A lot of the songs on this album are a bit lame. From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English lame lame 1 / leɪm / adjective 1 INJURE a) unable to walk properly because your leg or foot is injured or weak a lame dog go lame (=become lame ) b) the lame people who are lame 2 BELIEVE a lame excuse or explanation is weak and difficult to believe lame excuse/explanation She gave some lame excuse about missing the bus.

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