"<to be> in the tank for <someone>" (From Gerald Cohen)

[Bapopik at AOL.COM]

Barry,---would you please forward this to ads-l. If I send it from any
computer other than my own, it will arrive encrypted. ----------Best regards,  and
all good wishes for the new year. ----Jerry


From: American  Dialect Society on behalf of Mark Spahn
Subject: "<to be> in the tank  for <someone>"

Gentlemen (and ladies):

Someone told me today  that this would be an excellent
place to ask about a certain phrase that  seems to be new
in 2005 and that I cannot find in any  dictionary.


The phrase "<to be> in the tank for  <someone>" means
to be a partisan in favor of a given person, or at  least that
is what I infer from uses of this phrase, such as
"the New York  Times is in the tank for Hillary".
What, precisely, does this phrase  mean?
Is it pejorative to be in the tank for (never "with") someone?
Is  this phrase used only, or predominantly, in the United States?
What is its  origin?  Did it come from sports, or
did a bit of chemical engineering  jargon
make its way into the mainstream in 2005?
I did not find the answer  via Google,
but that just means I'm an unskillful googler.

-- Mark  Spahn  (West Seneca, NY)

******************

The article in  question uses the term derogatorily.  The implication seems
to be that the  media accepts Hillary uncritically without showing any of the
spunk expected of  our ever vigilant reporters.  So "be in the tank for
(someone)" here seems  to derive from boxing "go in the tank," i.e., throw a fight.

Gerald  Cohen