in a wink

More realistically, though, he has attempted to neutralize the issue by doing things like calling a six-week ban on abortion “terrible,” while at the same time, in a wink and a nod to evangelical voters, running ads bragging about choosing the justices who overturned Roe.

It has occurred often in a "wink and nod" fashion where a political candidate says something to get elected but then acts differently once in office.

He offered to show me what he said is the only sleight-of-hand card magic he invented, called a “wink change,” in which the color of a card is changed “in a wink.”

The guard had a three-point play coming out of the review, hit an effortless three-pointer from the top of the key and added two more points at the free throw line to extend the lead to 11 and get his team out of trouble in a wink.

“In a wink of an eye, each and every one of us could be facing a life crisis without the safety net to see them through.”