Rubber stamp, is a political metaphor referring to an institution that has little power and rarely disagrees with more powerful organs, though usually it formally has much greater power. For example, in a dictatorship, the legislature may be little more than a rubber stamp of approval on the dictator's decrees. Conversely, in a constitutional monarchy, the monarch is typically a rubber stamp to an elected parliament, even if he or she legally possesses considerable reserve powers and/or disagrees with the parliament's decisions. The following is a list of common political metaphors: Relating to the executive figurehead: a leader whose powers are entirely symbolic, such as a constitutional monarch. ... It has been suggested that Dictator be merged into this article or section. ... A legislature is a governmental deliberative assembly with the power to adopt laws. ... Rule by decree is a style of governance allowing quick, unchallenged creation of law by a single person or group, and is used primarily by dictators and absolute monarchs. ... Constitutional monarchies with representative parliamentary systems are shown in red A constitutional monarchy is a form of monarchical government established under a constitutional system which acknowledges an elected or hereditary monarch as head of state. ... Look up monarch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A reserve power is a power that may be exercised by the head of state of a country in certain exceptional circumstances. ...

The term itself likely stems from the commonplace practice of subordinate employees or officials being deputized and given the authority to sign the name of their superior or employer. In situations where this superior official's signature may frequently be required for routine paperwork, a literal rubber stamp is used, with a likeness of their hand-written signature. This could also be utilized personally by the individual named on the stamp, to prevent hand fatigue and save time when a large number of documents need to be signed. In essence, the term is meant to convey an endorsement without careful thought or personal investment in the outcome, especially since it is usually expected as the stamper's duty to do so. In the situation where a dictator's legislature is a "rubber stamp," the orders they are meant to endorse are formalities they are expected to legitimize. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Dictatorship. ...

Rubberstamp is also an artificial verb referring to the above mentioned adjective. A verb is a part of speech that usually denotes action (bring, read), occurrence (decompose, glitter), or a state of being (exist, stand). Depending on the language, a verb may vary in form according to many factors, possibly including its tense, aspect, mood and voice. ...