making it across the pond?

[Laurence Horn]

At 12:15 AM -0500 6/24/05, Mullins, Bill wrote:
>The (London) Times, Friday, Sep 28, 1928; pg. 7; Issue 45010; col A
>      The Coming Election. Mr. Baldwin On His Policy., Safeguarding
>Pledge Repeated.
>
>[quoting a speech by PM Baldwin]
>
>"Mr. Tom Johnston, for whom I confess a sneaking regard, described
>the programme as a sort of dog's breakfast, in which there were
>scraps for every palate. (Laughter.)"

Predating the OED's first cite from a 1937 Partridge dictionary
entry, thereby presupposing earlier establishment.  (Partridge claims
a low Glaswegian origin for the phrase.)  Of course Baldwin's is
precisely the kind of transpondine usage I was referring to, and I
could imagine Blair making a similar comment today.   Would an
American politician make a similar comment?  And if so would it be
met with laughter or bewilderment?

Larry

>  >This led me to wonder whether "dog's breakfast" has become standard
>>U.S. usage. I don't remember coming across it before outside of
>>British, or maybe Australian or Canadian, writing, but I'm pretty
>>sure Friedman is no Brit, and both he and his editors presumably
>>believed that his readers would understand the allusion--or that they
>>would google it and find e.g.
>>
>>The Phrase Finder (http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/114550.html
>><http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/114550.html> )
>>Dog's breakfast
>>
>>Meaning
>>A mess or muddle.
>>
>>Origin
>>Derived from the unpleasant habit of dogs, rising early before the
>>local townsfolk, or eating the mess of food dropped or vomited onto
>>the pavement the previous night.