"dog-whistle politics" definition from Double-Tongued Dictionary

dog-whistle politics n. a concealed, coded, or unstated idea, usually divisive or politically dangerous, nevertheless understood by the intended voters. Also dog whistle issue. Related: DIMBY, needle, rark up, hikoi, politics of aspiration, squiggly G's, Rafia, chazer caucus, English, Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Politics

Editorial Note: A dog whistle is often used as a figurative device for something cannot be heard or understood by everyone, or that surreptitiously compels people to come along. Etymological Note: Despite the information in the first 2000 citation, this term probably originated in Australia or New Zealand, though it could be derived from the dog whistle effect in American polling, which is the ability of survey participants to distinguish a difference in questions where a pollster may not have intended one. The credit for the coinage in the 2005 cite is unproven though possible, since Lynton Crosby ran four election campaigns for Australian Prime Minister John Howard; Crosby certainly introduced the term in the U.K.

"dog-whistle politics" definition from Double-Tongued Dictionary