I found the phrase “less is never more” in Maureen Dowd’s article “An Irish Catholic wake-up,” dealing with vice-presidential debate on October 11 in October 13’s NY Times. It comes in the following statement:
“Biden was trying to do what Romney did well: come across as a senior
partner chastising a junior associate who screwed up. For this vice
president, though, less is never more. He mugged condescension as if
he were the star of a silent movie. But who ever accused Uncle Joe of
subtlety?”
Does “less is never more” mean it’s better to overdo than underdo, or is it vice versa? What does it imply in particular to Joe Biden case?
Is it a fancy turn of word, or just a cliche?
PS.
We have a Japanese adage, 過ぎたるは及ばざるが如しliterally meaning "Too much is as bad as too little," which I presume to be similar to "Less is never more."
Best Answer
This is a reference to the phrase less is more:
Reading the line before the quoted paragraph gives further context:
The Vice President is known for his gaffes, as well as a folksy demeanor. By saying "less is never more," Dowd is saying that Biden's bluster is an asset–to be calm or overly restrained in his speech would be out of character and probably render him a less effective speaker in some sense. However, in the recent debate he may have overdone it to the detriment of his ticket's poll ratings.