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stump speech

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Stump Speaking (1853–54), George Caleb Bingham

Etymology

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From a bucolic image of a politician touring little settlements with his boilerplate speech which he delivers standing atop the stump of a chopped-down tree.

Noun

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stump speech (plural stump speeches)

  1. (politics, chiefly US) A standard speech by a politician running for office.
    • 2008 November 3, John M. Broder, Julie Bosman, “In States Once Reliably Red, Palin and Biden Tighten Their Stump Speeches”, in The New York Times[1], →ISSN:
      A week ago, two or three events a day was the norm for each candidate. They have shortened their stump speeches and are spending less time greeting supporters.
    • 2014, Astra Taylor, The People's Platform: Taking Back Power and Culture in the Digital Age, Henry Holt and Company, →ISBN:
      “You're hungry and you want a burrito,” [Jeff] Jarvis exclaimed during one of his frequent stump speeches.

Translations

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Further reading

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