( lame ducks)
1.
If you describe someone or something as a lame duck , you are critical of them because they are not successful and need to be helped a lot.
...lame-duck industries.
N-COUNT : oft N n [ disapproval ]
2.
If you refer to a politician or a government as a lame duck , you mean that they have little real power, for example because their period of office is coming to an end.
...a lame duck government.
N-COUNT : usu N n