Minority Leader Schumer Called It "Perfidy."

[MineralMan]

Now, there's a word that isn't part of the active vocabulary for most people. Schumer used the word to describe the action of the Republican-controlled Senate in refusing to hear witnesses in the impeachment trial of Donald Trump.

The most common synonym of "perfidy" is "disloyalty." What the GOP Senators were disloyal to was the spirit of the Constitution.

The word also has a meaning in warfare. There, it means using a false flag or promise of peace to lower an enemy's guard. For example, putting up a white flag of surrender and then attacking the other side when its representatives come to accept that surrender. Or "perfidy" could be using a red cross flag to penetrate enemy lines in order to strike the enemy from its rear.

We are at war in this country. It is a civil war where no shots are being fired, at least currently. The Republicans, led by Donald Trump, committed perfidy by promising a fair trial of the President, while knowingly plotting to excuse his unconstitutional behavior and acquit him, regardless of the evidence. In refusing to even hear evidence, the Senate Republicans compounded their perfidy.

Chuck Schumer used the right word. He fully understands both of its meanings. Sadly, what he said went right over the heads of even the media. On CBS News yesterday afternoon, one of the anchors simply didn't know what the word "perfidy" meant and said so openly. Once again, the education of those who are supposed to be educating the public through news reporting was lacking.

[spanone]

1. msnbc was mocking him for using that word...

while probably scrambling to look it up....our lazy media

[MineralMan]

2. I missed that, I'm afraid.

Mocking people who use words the mocker doesn't understand is an old, old practice. Rather that consult a dictionary to make up for their own poor education, such people make fun of the use of a word by a well-educated person. It's a compensatory thing to do.

I first heard that word when I was about 12 years old. I looked it up as soon as I had access to a dictionary. Today, definitions of words we don't know are available instantly. There is no excuse for not understanding what someone has said.

[NewJeffCT]

7. It doesn't matter - Perfidy is not a strong word

Republicans are so much better at messaging because they use strong memorable words while too many Democrats use reserved legalese.

"No witnesses, no documents in an impeachment trial is a perfidy. It is a grand tragedy."

Versus

"Republicans destroyed the Rule of Law by blocking witnesses to testify."

"Republicans shredded the Constitution by blocking witness testimony and evidence"

"Republicans crushed the Constitution and wrecked the Rule of Law by blocking witnesses and evidence"

[MineralMan]

24. We would not be talking about what he said had he used

any of your other substitute statements. More people will remember his statement because he used an unfamiliar word.

What Chuck Schumer revealed was a keen mind and a sense of history. His statement will be quoted for a long time to come.

[crickets]

25. Couldn't agree more.

The moment Claire McCaskill complained that Schumer used that specific word, I looked it up to make sure I knew what perfidy meant. Turns out I had the general idea, but had missed the nuance of the definition. Now I am unlikely to ever forget what it means and will likely think of January 31, 2020 every time I hear it.

Chuck Schumer knew exactly what he wanted to say and what he was doing when he said it.

He picked the right word.

[MineralMan]

26. Exactly!

[Ferrets are Cool]

31. Every time I learn a new word of substance

such as this one, I am a happy man. Anyone who chooses otherwise has a stagnant mindset.

[MineralMan]

45. Exactly!

[Pepsidog]

64. Yes we Dems and our high brow words go right over the heads of the public.

[treestar]

80. The trouble with those terms is they can sound exaggerated

But the ignorance in this country makes "perfidy" useless. Disloyalty to the rule of law might have been better.

[Backseat Driver]

68. Unsuitable for the dinner table, I clearly remember one of the words I was sent off

to look up in the dictionary: a "quid pro quo" word, LOL: p-r-o-s-t-i-t-u-t-e!

[Ilsa]

44. I would not have called it mocking.

Not if you are referring to the discussion between McCaskell, Williams, and Wallace. She prefers simpler, Truman-esque language, but "perfidy" is the perfect word for it. I didn't get the feeling that they were mocking Schumer, just that they were surprised that they needed to explain his comment any more than they explain everyone else's comnents.

[Buckeyeblue]

3. Claire just said she wished he used a different word

And while Perfidy is sza great word choice, it's probably not the best word to use for a sound bite.

He should have used the word cover up. He should have said that the Republicans are afraid of the truth.

[MineralMan]

5. Sometimes a sound bite isn't what is needed, frankly.

Chuck Schumer used a word that is in his active vocabulary. Many people understood it. Others can look it up and improve their own vocabularies. I'm not a fan of dumbing things down to the lowest common denominator.

Perfidy does not mean "cover up." It means what Schumer was trying to convey, concisely and accurately.

[Buckeyeblue]

8. Like it or not the sound bite is an important communication tool

You have just a few seconds to grab people's attention. So you need to make it count.

[MineralMan]

9. The sound bite is also part of the dumbing of America.

That is regrettable.

[Captain Zero]

67. Republicans covered up evidence and witnesses for Trumps' crimes. THAT was the the Fake Trial.

Trump is the hoax. The republican party is whitewashing his crimes against the country. They all need to be voted out.

[wishstar]

96. I noticed Claire used the term "bad faith" to convey the Repubs actions

I confess I had to look up perfidy even though I have an Ivy League education (during which I hated my one and only law class!)

[Takket]

4. I heard him say it. I didn't know what it meant.

I literally googled it and knew the meaning five seconds later. Is that so difficult for the media?

[MineralMan]

6. You did what intelligent people do when encountering a new word.

That's how we learn new words and add them to our own vocabularies.

My wife didn't know the word, either, and asked me what it meant. I know the word, so I told her what it meant. She knows words I don't know. We learn from each other.

[NewJeffCT]

10. I knew what it meant and I also know

it was a bad word choice. Perfidy is not a strong word

dictionary.com says these words are "related" to perfidy and almost ALL of them would be far better choices to use in terms of a media sound bite

fake, infidelity, whitewash, scam, falseness, duplicity, sellout, dodge, treason, betrayal, flimflam, perfidiousness, gyp, spoof, disaffection, put-on, racket, corruption, double-dealing, bunco

[MineralMan]

21. I disagree.

We would not be having this conversation had he used one of those related words. What he said was memorable and worthy of discussion. It will be remembered because he used le mot juste.

[MontanaMama]

27. I did the same thing.

I was at a stoplight and had to tell Siri to do it but she couldn’t. Had to wait until I was in the drive through at the bank to do it myself. Chuck soft pedals things more than I’d like in general but I thought his short speech yesterday, including that word were perfect.

[MineralMan]

30. +100!

[PCIntern]

11. I first saw it when I was a kid

In a James Bond Book. Can’t rexall which but Bond says to himself “Perfidious Albion”.

I have a weird memory

[eppur_se_muova]

12. It's a phrase of historical importance ...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfidious_Albion

[MineralMan]

15. Thank you for that link. I learned from it.

At one time, our federal legislators had keen senses of history. These days, that's not so common. Chuck Schumer, however, is one of our legislators who is grounded in history. Bravo!

[malaise]

74. Great link

Thanks

[PCIntern]

86. Terrific.

[MineralMan]

13. I can't remember the first time I saw the word.

It was probably in a book. However, it could also have been something I heard someone say. I do remember looking it up, though, because that's what I always did when a new word popped up. I still do, although words that are new to me these days are usually technical in nature.

Since I have made my living as a writer, I always consider who my audience is, and adjust my vocabulary to suit that audience. If I need to introduce a word that is unlikely to be known by some of that audience, I follow its use with a brief definition or a synonym. I'm not a novelist or writer of fiction of any kind. My role as a writer is always to educate my readers. Most of the time, I'm writing about some sort of technical subject, so learning terminology is always part of what I'm writing.

The important trick is understanding what the audience already knows, and then telling them about something they don't know.

[Ferrets are Cool]

34. And looking up that reference made me wish he had used THAT phrase.

That would have really got their knickers in a knot.

[eppur_se_muova]

14. Saw it in an SAT test prep. :)

... suggesting college-bound seniors were half-expected to be familiar with it.

It's OK to use $25 words when talking to the public, just don't overdo it.

And I tend to agree with the 'false friendly flag' interpretation.

[MineralMan]

17. Back in the days when high school students were exposed

to history far more than they are now, they would have encountered the word, as I did. Today, probably not.

Senator Schumer used the word because he knows that his public statements are more than just sound bites. He used the word "perfidy" with full reference to the treachery of others throughout history. His statement was a sound bite, but one worth remembering, because of that. Sometimes, a bit of erudition is worthwhile, especially if your words are likely to be remembered.

[dalton99a]

16. Kick

[MineralMan]

19. That's wonderful!

Where did you find those? I love it!

[burrowowl]

42. Love the comics!

[zanana1]

18. I guess it upset some of you but...

I just learned a new word. Thanks, Chuck!

[MineralMan]

20. Yup!

[stillcool]

22. If you're ignorant..

about something...make fun of it. On cable, you never can tell if they're ignorant, or spinning. At of all that happened yesterday, the word perfidy is an issue. And, some believe because it has been made an issue, it was the wrong choice of words. It's what cable does.. over and over...from Al Gore's lockbox, to the Dean Scream, to Reverend Wright...tale an incident and use it as a tool to take someone down. No wonder they don't like the word.

[MineralMan]

23. But, we're talking about the word he used today.

That means it was more than a sound bite. Had he used a different word, we would not be discussing what he said this morning.

In order to discuss what he said, for whatever reason, the word gets defined, and is better understood. It didn't get thrown away as a mere soundbite.

We remember what people say because we think about what they said.

In this thread, links to historical references have appeared, along with definitions and further explorations of the word and what it means. For me, that means that people are learning and understanding more than they would have if he had said "cover-up" instead of "perfidy."

It was a very effective word choice. People have learned from it.

[live love laugh]

28. Perfidy and pettifogging

Two new words added to my vocabulary that I wish I did not know.

[MineralMan]

29. I can't imagine a word that I wished I did not know.

Nope. Not a single one. I hope to keep adding new words to my vocabulary until I'm dead.

[Ferrets are Cool]

37. +1

My sister mocks me incessantly about using big words. I just chuckle at her and say "Sorry, it's the first one that came to mind".

[MineralMan]

83. My wife does word puzzles frequently.

When she's stuck, she asks me for help. One day, while doing some puzzle or another, she asked, "What's a nine letter word for 'flightless bird?"

"Cassowary," I said, almost instantly.

"I hate you," she joked. "How did you know that?"

I explained that there are only a few flightless birds. I know their names. The only one that is as long as 9 letters is Cassowary.

Ostrich
Emu
Kiwi
Cassowary

I learned about flightless birds in a book on animals when I was about 10. The idea of a flightless bird was funny to me, so I remembered the ones described in that book.

[Ferrets are Cool]

88. Touche

[live love laugh]

93. I love words under normal circumstances--that these surfaced

from the coverup court is my issue. IOW if there wasn’t a cover up I would more than likely never have known them.

[Roy Rolling]

32. My Word of the Day

It is the perfect word to describe what happened. And continually happens. The Republicans suck everyone into a situation promising fairness, but then ambush Democrats with hidden traps.

It’s the legend of the Trojan Horse all over. That was perfidy, and important enough of a concept to memorialize it.

[MineralMan]

46. +100

[MineralMan]

33. #Perfidy is now trending on Twitter

Thank you, Senator Schumer!

https://twitter.com/search?q=%23perfidy

[magicarpet]

82. Words,... words,.. words,..

Some people hate words because the word is brand new to their vocabulary, irregardless of how appropriate and especially how memorable that new word may be to the standard and common lexicon. Some people just hate new stuff ~~~ like ~~~ new knowledge~~~or enhancing their vocabularies with new words. Intelligence and thinking are both hard work, and to some it is questionable whether the extra effort is really worth it.

The great and exalted leader of North Korea served one up on a silver platter to His Highness of Orange not too long ago. That word will never fade from the pages of history because many had to run to their Merriam-Webster Dictionaries to to decipher the meaning.

D-O-T-A-R-D.

Oh boy did that new word/hammer hit the nail right on the head and drove the nail home.

[MineralMan]

85. That's a perfect example of the perfect word.

I remember the discussion that happened here when that word was used. Now, everyone associates it with Trump. Kim Jong Un could have called Trump a "bumbling old fool," but he had a better word available. Now, I don't know if he pulled that out of his own brain, but it was perfect.

Now that I am in my dotage, I hope never to become a dotard.

[malaise]

95. Has Merriam-Webster weighed in yet?

Love it

[malaise]

35. It was the perfect word for the moment

Last edited Sat Feb 1, 2020, 09:16 PM - Edit history (1)

Others can expand

[MineralMan]

36. Thanks, malaise!

[malaise]

55. I learned that word through a very old classic

The original Perfidia
Xavier Cugat - "Perfidia"

Nat King Cole

The Jamaican version

[MineralMan]

57. Thanks for the Xavier Cugat video.

Wonderful! There are many, many versions of that song. I posted another video downthread, with Linda Ronstadt singing it. A very poignant, sad love song.

[malaise]

60. Ha

I almost posted that one - a true classic that made me understand that perfidy was serious business.

[MineralMan]

61. I heard that!

I was so sad to hear that Linda Ronstadt's parkinson's ended her singing career.

[NBachers]

75. Thanks for exposing me to the Phyllis Dillon version- I was going to post one, but yours is better!

[malaise]

76. Watched her perform that live

many times. I was a genuine Phyllis fan.

Post yours anyway

[timms139]

38. The whole Republican base

The whole Republican base are still trying to find someone to look it up and tell them what the word means.

[bluedye33139]

39. Perfidiousness is one of my favorite words

[MineralMan]

40. Thomas Paine Knew the Word Perfidy

[malaise]

77. I didn't discover Paine until I reached university

but I sure knew the word via that classic tune and its many covers.

[MineralMan]

79. A lying, cheating lover is perfidious, no doubt.

It's a great way to understand the word.

[burrowowl]

41. Perfidia one of my favorite Augustine Laura songs

[sandensea]

43. That's their song

[MineralMan]

47. Perfect.

I didn't know that Nat King Cole sang in Spanish. Thanks!

[sandensea]

51. Thanks. That's from his famous 'Cole en Espanol' album

Lindsey's song is in there too, come to think of it.

kiss ass, kiss ass, kiss ass...

[MineralMan]

52. Linda Ronstadt Also covered that song very beautifully:

[sandensea]

53. That's beautiful. Thanks!

Here's hoping she can sing at the next inaugural - which of course could only mean a Democrat would be the one being inaugurated.

[murielm99]

69. Unfortunately, she cannot sing any more

due to her Parkinson's disease.

[MineralMan]

71. That is very sad. She had a wonderful voice.

[sandensea]

87. I'm sorry to hear that, muriel.

God bless her.

[SammyWinstonJack]

48. When did the republicans promise a fair trial? They promised just the opposite.

[nevergiveup]

49. I would have preferred he used the word

"fuckery", but that is just me.

[MineralMan]

50. Yeah, OK...

No.

[mr_lebowski]

78. +2

It's time to get pissed, and to sound pissed, and to use words that the American People recognize as words you use ... when, you're ... ya know ... fucking pissed.

Just MHO.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

54. The phrase "perfidious Albion" came to my mind.

It was used in revolutionary France to decry how England had been supportive of the revolution until it discovered France would no longer be a monarchy. "Perfidious Albion" (an old name for England) has been used ever since to criticize the political treachery of the British empire, and by analogy to any political faithlessness. In that context it was the perfect word.

[MineralMan]

56. I'm sure Schumer was familiar with that.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

65. The word is nuanced, and carries the connotation of *political* treachery,

which is why Schumer's use of it was perfect. I don't understand why the talking heads on TV weren't familiar with it; it isn't that obscure. Any college graduate who ever took a history course would have heard of "perfidious Albion."

[MineralMan]

70. Sadly, the education and intellects of many of those "talking heads"

aren't what they used to be. Still, sleeping through history lectures was common, even in my ancient day. I never overestimate what TV news folks now any more. That's especially true of the people who run their own shows on TV. They are personalities first and journalists second, I think, for the most part.

I didn't encounter that word in any of my history classes. Rather, I encountered it in other reading on my own. Curiosity is the best teacher, I think. Being a voracious reader is another excellent teacher.

[rickyhall]

58. What Hitler did to Stalin by invading Russia.

[MineralMan]

62. Yes, that, too.

[BumRushDaShow]

59. Funny but the panels on MSNBC last night were bugging out for some reason too

I had heard the word used before and sortof equated it's use as an attempt to invoke the level outrage needed for this circumstance, not unlike someone using the word "craven" in a similar fashion (often used to describe certain evil behaviors or acts).

[JDC]

63. He used a not oft used word properly and in context.

I really like Chuck Schumer, but he will not be remembered as an impact player for this point in history. Sorry, that is just a fact.

We all forgot he was even there except for this. This is his headline to date in the Trump Impeachment.

This is his "trending" moment.


#perfidy

[MineralMan]

66. The Minority Leader in the Senate really isn't a power player,

unfortunately. He's been doing his best, but a Senate Majority is almost impossible to get past.

I think he made his point well. May he be the Majority Leader in 2021.

[northoftheborder]

72. Perfectly excellent and fitting word!!

I used it recently in a word game and no one knew what it meant; all were college educated people. I love those seldom used but perfectly fitting unusual words!!!

(I'm a compulsive Scrabble player!

[MineralMan]

73. It's entirely possible to go through college and never encounter the word.

We have so minimized the general humanities requirements for most college majors and the history and civics requirements in our high schools that an education that covers history well is almost unheard of today.

More's the pity.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

90. Education is being transformed into pre-industry training.

Our educational system swings through the same arc as our political system, just at longer, slower intervals. The fad of having computer "labs" in many schools is an example. Such labs were ostensibly to teach children how to use computers, but, in fact, were mostly used to train them in the use of a few Microsoft products contemporarily used in business. Hopefully the smart phone has eliminated that particular drain on teacher time.

[MineralMan]

91. That appears to be true.

Perhaps, eventually, it will come back around to recognizing the value of a strong general education in the humanities to supplement the more specific learning needed in various specialties.

Perhaps, but I'm not holding my breath.

[Grasswire2]

81. quick google search shows I have used that word 34 times on DU over the years

...and very recently as well here.

Claire McCaskill showed some ignorance mocking Schumer for the word.

It's been part of my vocabulary since George W./Cheney/Rumsfeld et al.

[MineralMan]

92. Excellent!

[Botany]

84. Perfidy

“I think he did something that was clearly inappropriate,” Mr. Alexander said. “I think it is inappropriate for the president to ask the leader of a foreign nation to investigate a leading political rival, which the president says he did. I think it is inappropriate at least in part to withhold aid to encourage that investigation.”

“But that is not treason, that is not bribery, that is not a high crime and misdemeanor,” he added, listing the criteria enumerated in the Constitution for impeachable offenses.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/31/us/politics/alexander-impeachment-witnesses.html

So selling out your country, asking for a bribe, and then lying to cover it up isn't a high crime or misdemeanor?

[Mersky]

89. "... no witnesses, no documents in an impeachment trial is a perfidy."

“To not allow a witness, a document - no witnesses, no documents in an impeachment trial is a perfidy. “

___
When Schumer said that by the escalator bank after the votes to table the Democrats’ amendments, I sat up a little straighter. Had to scan through my internal dictionary, as I processed it as a righteous shaming for what had just occurred. Dems gave them a second, third, fourth, and fifth chance to do the right thing with those amendments, but the obstinate republicans nonetheless signed their collective names as accomplices to the pResident’s coverup.

I do wish AP had included the word, perfidy, in their captioning of his comments. I am miffed over CSPAN not being at the stakeout post after those awful votes.

[Hekate]

94. You just increased my vocabulary. I knew the word. I have used the word. BUT I never knew ALL of it

Thank you, for opening my mind to a whole new way of looking at it. "Perfidy" exactly describes what the GOP just did.

Oh, and I heard Ari Melber (I think it was) complaining about a $25 word...

At least later in the evening some others just flatly said this "is a day that will live in infamy."