like turkeys voting for Christmas

laɪk ˌtɜːkiz ˈvəʊtɪŋ fə ˈkɹɪsməs

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#1·7h ago

(Britain, simile, humorous, of an action#Noun, action) Self-defeating; serving to bring about a situation detrimental to the performer of the action.

The next morning [14 December 1977] the Liberals held a two-and-a-half meeting at which Steel let them have their head. Only two MPs, Howells and Johnston, said they were willing to continue the Pact. The opponents were delighted. ‘Us vo…

Origin: Because turkeys are commonly eaten at Christmas, turkeys voting for (an early) Christmas would be hastening their own death. The phrase is thought to have been (1944–1986) who used it to express opposition to the 1977 Lib–Lab pact. It was popularized by the British Prime Minister James Callaghan (1912–2005) who used it in the House of Commons in March 1979 when his Labour Party lost a vote of no confidence: see the 1977 and 1979 quotations. Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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