Here is the opening of a recent item from The Hill [http://thehill.com/homenews/house/319443-immigration-advocates-claim-resounding-win-for-their-side-in-quiet-august]:

“Advocates for comprehensive immigration reform are claiming victory in the August recess. Their argument? They won because they didn’t lose.

“With legislation stalled in the Republican-controlled House, the push to overhaul the immigration system has not dominated the national headlines or evening news during the four weeks that Congress has been taking its annual summer vacation.

“Proponents of reform say they entered the recess worried that foes of the effort would flood town-hall meetings and stage large rallies, in a repeat of the Tea Party uprising that threw the push for healthcare reform off track in the summer of 2009.

“Despite efforts by Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) and others, that dynamic hasn’t materialized.

“’What’s more important than what we have seen is what we haven’t seen,’ said Jeremy Robbins, director of the Partnership for a New American Economy, a group co-founded by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg that is advocating for immigration reform.

“’August was a resounding win for us.’”

Not coincidentally, I have already received e-mails asking me to make contributions to several groups attempting to build upon this “resounding win.”

In lieu of sending a check, I have added “resounding win” to my running list of phrases that no longer have a shred of meaning in American politics.