Staring Down The Barrel Of...., In Line (To Succeed), Up For Grabs, Band-Aid Solution

Staring Down The Barrel Of....
When you are staring down the barrel of something, you are faced with an imminent danger (one which happens soon).

This is used in a political context.

Example: "New York City is staring down the barrel of a $4 billion budget deficit next year. Mayor Michael Bloomberg has called on his city commissioners to look at their departments and slash a combined $800 million from the current budget and $1.2 billion from the next budget."


In Line (To Succeed)
When you are "in line" to succeed someone, you are part of a line of succession determining who, and in what order, will replace a leader if he/ she cannot continue to serve due to death, disability or other causes.

Bad Example: U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden has apparently stated, incorrectly, "I'm second in line to be President!" If this was true, someone else would be first in line to succeed President Obama should any misfortune befall him. This is not correct.

Good Example: The Vice-President is first in line to succeed the President. The second in line is the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

Incidentally, a "Bidenism" is an incorrect statement made in a moment of loose mental concentration by Vice-President (and former Senator) Joe Biden. VP Biden has a history of statements that veer off in unexpected and unplanned directions.


Up For Grabs
When something is up for grabs, it is available; it can be obtained freely without stealing from someone else.

This is often used in electoral politics, but has other applications.

Example: (Context: United States) "In the mid-term Congressional election this November, all House seats and one third of Senate seats are up for grabs."

Barring special elections, which can occur as a result of deaths of members serving in office, all House seats and one third of Senate seats are up for grabs every two years, but American news articles will write as in the above example. A reader unfamiliar with the American political system might think that this situation is somehow exceptional.

House members serve for two year terms; Senate members serve for six, and their elections are staggered so that a third of all seats are subject to election every two years (so that one vote is held for both houses of Congress). We call these elections "mid-term" because they occur in the middle of the Presidential term of office (four years).


Band-Aid Solution
A band-aid is a small covering placed over small cuts to protect an injured area, limit bleeding, and speed healing. Properly speaking, Band-Aid is a brand name, but is so widely known that it has become an idiom in itself.

A band-aid solution is a quick fix incapable of dealing with problems of a large scale, providing temporary relief only, and usually, inadequate temporary relief at that.

Example: "Education is in crisis. What we need is comprehensive reform, not band-aid solutions that won't work and only delay the inevitable!"

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary .