hunt where the ducks are

• go hunting where the ducks are
• hunt where the ducks were
• hunt where the ducks fly

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hunt where the ducks are (third-person singular simple present hunts where the ducks are, present participle hunting where the ducks are, simple past and past participle hunted where the ducks were or hunted where the ducks are)

1. (idiomatic) To seek opportunities or results in situations or places where they are most likely to be found.
   • 1969, David A. Frier, Conflict of Interest in the Eisenhower Administration, Iowa State University Press, page 34:

     In determining the content of his telecast [Richard] Nixon had, in the vernacular, chosen to hunt where the ducks were, i.e., he made his pitch to that vast television audience which had long shown a preference for the “I Love Lucy” show over the more erudite forms of television fare.

   • 2001, Jonathan M. Schoenwald, “Creating Conflagration: Barry Goldwater and the Republican Party”, in A Time for Choosing: The Rise of Modern American Conservatism, Oxford University Press, →ISBN, page 181:

     With his education policy Buckley went “hunting where the ducks were,” knowing that his anti-busing position and neighborhood schools program would warm the hearts of whites fearful of African-American encroachment in their neighborhoods.

   • 2006 July 24, Paul Krugman, “Like Oil and Vinegar”, in New York Times, retrieved 18 June 2013:

     I wish you had pushed your history back a few years, to Barry Goldwater’s remark following his defeat in ’64 that his fellow Republicans should hunt where the ducks are — by which he meant, look for votes among southern whites who were Democrats, but who were unhappy that the Democratic party had embraced the civil rights movement.

   • 2009 February 18, Don Martin, “Ignatieff woos West in curious strategy”, in Calgary Herald, Canada, retrieved 18 June 2013:

     [I]t's a curious strategy for a Liberal leader to focus on the West when, to paraphrase former premier Ralph Klein, he would be better off hunting where the ducks are. There's got to be stronger growth potential from hard-selling the brand in Ontario.

   • 2011 January 27, Todd Wallack, “Patrick sees tax collection as pivotal”, in boston.com, retrieved 18 June 2013:

     [T]he governor is requesting funds . . . to boost tax collections and examinations of tax returns, particularly those filed by major corporations operating in multiple states. . . . "You hunt where the ducks are," said Robert Bliss, Department of Revenue spokesman.

   • 2020, James A. McCann, Michael Jones-Correa, “Introduction: An Emerging Bipartisan Consensus on Immigration Is Disrupted”, in Holding Fast: Resilience and Civic Engagement Among Latino Immigrants, New York, N.Y.: Russell Sage Foundation, →ISBN, page 15:

     John Sides, Michael Tesler, and Lynn Vavreck show that [Donald] Trump’s distinctive commingling of economic and cultural grievances, and particularly his hawkish views on migration, appealed to a significant portion of the party’s rank-and-file base—a cohort that had been visible for years before the billionaire declared his candidacy. As these authors put it, Trump “simply hunted where the ducks are” better than any of his rivals.

• In the imperative form this verb is used as a proverb.