bunkum
\BUHNG-kuhm\
noun
1. insincere speechmaking by a politician intended merely to please local constituents.
2. insincere talk; claptrap; humbug.
Quotes
"I know a chap," said Beastly, "an American called Brown, who knows everybody who is anybody. I'll tackle him, and I am sure he'll take it on. But"—he held out a warning forefinger—"no bunkum, you know."
-- William Gerhardie, The Polyglots, 1925
Origin
Bunkum, an Americanism, entered English during the 16th Congress, held in 1819–1821. The term was modeled after a speech given by Felix Walker, who said he was bound to speak for Buncombe, the North Carolina county in the district he represented.
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