The buck stops here

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Buck passing. (Discuss)

The famous "The Buck Stops Here" sign from President Harry Truman's desk. The reverse of the sign says "I'm From Missouri".

President Truman with "The Buck Stops Here" sign on his desk

"The buck stops here" is a phrase that was popularized by U.S. President Harry S. Truman. It refers to "passing the buck," i.e., handing responsibility to someone else, and the fact that the president has to make the decisions and accept the ultimate responsibility for those decisions.

The Buck, a marker or counter, was used to indicate the person whose turn it was to deal in the game of Poker. If the player did not wish to deal he could pass the responsibility by passing the "buck", as the counter came to be called, to the next player

[edit] See also

• Buck passing
• Button (poker)
• Scapegoat

[edit] References

• "The Buck Stops Here" Desk Sign on trumanlibrary.org
• Mitford M. Mathews, ed., A Dictionary of Americanisms on Historical Principles (Chicago, University of Chicago Press, 1951), I, pages 198-99.

This United States-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.