bully pulpit

noun

Definition of bully pulpit

: a prominent public position (such as a political office) that provides an opportunity for expounding one's views also : such an opportunity

Bully vs Bully Pulpit Example Sentences Learn More about bully pulpit

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Bully vs Bully Pulpit

Bully pulpit comes from the 26th U.S. President, Theodore Roosevelt, who observed that the White House was a bully pulpit. For Roosevelt, bully was an adjective meaning "excellent" or "first-rate"—not the noun bully ("a blustering, browbeating person") that's so common today. Roosevelt understood the modern presidency's power of persuasion and recognized that it gave the incumbent the opportunity to exhort, instruct, or inspire. He took full advantage of his bully pulpit, speaking out about the danger of monopolies, the nation's growing role as a world power, and other issues important to him. Since the 1970s, bully pulpit has been used as a term for an office—especially a political office—that provides one with the opportunity to share one's views.

Examples of bully pulpit in a Sentence

She uses her position as a famous actress as a bully pulpit.

Recent Examples on the Web

Many factors contributed, but none was more important than the surgeon general’s deft use of the bully pulpit. — Mark Hyman, The Denver Post, "Guest Commentary: Children, tackle football and possible dangers of brain diseases," 25 Aug. 2019 Evers did not call lawmakers into a special legislative session to take up the bill but rather used his bully pulpit to call for the new policy. — Molly Beck, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Tony Evers and Democratic lawmakers roll out bill to expand background checks to most gun sales," 15 Aug. 2019 Many Presidents have used their bully pulpit to inculcate moral virtues. — Rod Rosenstein, Time, "How To Stop White Supremacist Terrorism," 8 Aug. 2019 Trump traded the bully pulpit away already, in negotiations with President Xi. — Nicholas Frankovich, National Review, "The Unmade Case against China," 16 July 2019 But the challenge for federal law enforcement goes deeper than just needing support from the president’s bully pulpit. — Adam Goldman, New York Times, "F.B.I., Pushing to Stop Domestic Terrorists, Grapples With Limits on Its Power," 4 June 2019 As The Post’s Damian Paletta also noted, the announcement was an example of Trump’s successful use of the presidential bully pulpit. — Colby Itkowitz, Washington Post, "The Health 202: 'ACA' removed from swaths of Medicaid.gov website, watchdog reports," 12 July 2018 Still, the change of leadership in the House gives Ms. Waters and other Democrats a bully pulpit to pressure regulators to change these rules, or at least delay them. — Ryan Tracy, WSJ, "Democratic House Will Target Wall Street—but Can’t Stop Deregulation," 7 Nov. 2018 The President rode to the office of the presidency on a 140-character soapbox (now 280) and has since turned it into the ultimate presidential bully pulpit. — Time Staff, Time, "The 25 Most Influential People on the Internet," 28 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bully pulpit.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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More Definitions for bully pulpit

bully pulpit

noun

English Language Learners Definition of bully pulpit

US : an important public position that allows a person to express beliefs and opinions to many people

See the full definition for bully pulpit in the English Language Learners Dictionary

bully pulpit

Definition of bully pulpit

Bully vs Bully Pulpit

Examples of bully pulpit in a Sentence

First Known Use of bully pulpit

English Language Learners Definition of bully pulpit

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