The acronym RINO first appeared in 1992, though the full phrase on which it is based, Republican in name only, is much older, emerging as a popular political pejorative in the 1920s. The concept of being a ‘dodgy’ Republican by being insufficiently conservative is in fact a recurring theme in the history of the Republican party. During the 1930s and 40s, the expression Me-too Republican was used to describe members whose political stance was mainly aligned to Democrat perspectives with only minor differences. In the 60s and 70s, the term Rockefeller Republican was used to denote the same kind of idea, describing moderate to liberal Republicans whose views were considered to be similar to those held by the famous businessman and politician Nelson Rockefeller.

The acronym RINO first appeared in 1992, though the full phrase on which it is based, Republican in name only, is much older, emerging as a popular political pejorative in the 1920s. The concept of being a ‘dodgy’ Republican by being insufficiently conservative is in fact a recurring theme in the history of the Republican party. During the 1930s and 40s, the expression Me-too Republican was used to describe members whose political stance was mainly aligned to Democrat perspectives with only minor differences. In the 60s and 70s, the term Rockefeller Republican was used to denote the same kind of idea, describing moderate to liberal Republicans whose views were considered to be similar to those held by the famous businessman and politician Nelson Rockefeller.