Pushing on a string is a figure of speech for influence that is more effective in moving things in one direction than another – you can pull, but not push.
If something is connected to you by a string, you can move it toward you by pulling on the string, but you can't move it away from you by pushing on the string. It is often used in the context of economic policy, specifically the view that "Monetary policy asymmetric; it being easier to stop an expansion than to end a severe contraction."
Read more about Pushing On A String: History, Monetary Policy
Famous quotes containing the words pushing and/or string:
“From the shrivelling gray
silk of its cocoon
a creature slowly
is pushing out
to stand clear....”
—Denise Levertov (b. 1923)
“Supposing everyone lived at one time what would they say. They would observe that stringing string beans is universal.”
—Gertrude Stein (1874–1946)