drain the swamp

English

Etymology

First use appears c. 1899.

Verb

drain the swamp (third-person singular simple present drains the swamp, present participle draining the swamp, simple past and past participle drained the swamp)

  1. (figurative, US politics) To eliminate the root causes of problems, especially to rid politics and government of evils, such as corruption and bureaucracy.
    • 1972 February 24, Ian Menzies, “Please! Drain swamp”, in The Boston Globe‎[1], page 24:
      Why can't the Massachusetts Legislature summon its courage, and the Governor, and drain the swamp of which it is all so well aware, an act which in and of itself would eliminate many of the alligators.
    • 2024 November 11, Peter Hyman, “Donald Trump is right. There is a "swamp", but it’s the left that must drain it”, in New Statesman‎[2]:
      In every conversation I had with Trump supporters at his rallies during the election, one impulse kept surfacing: drain the swamp.
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