Meaning of Nixon in China | Babel Free

Definitions

Suggesting the ability of a politician with an unassailable reputation among his or her supporters for representing and defending their values to take actions that would draw their criticism and even opposition if taken by someone without those credentials.

idiomatic

Examples

““People have tried to duplicate Nixon in China over and over again, including Iran,” Mann said. He cites the ill-fated 1986 journey by President Ronald Reagan’s national security adviser Robert “Bud” McFarlane, who traveled to Tehran carrying a Bible with a handwritten verse from Reagan and a key-shaped cake as a goodwill gesture for Iranian leaders.”

CEFR level