a little from column A, a little from column B
A combination of two factors or reasons.
Clinton would take a little from column A, a little from column B, depending on the day, his mood, and whom he had talked to last.
column
UK /ˈkɒləm/ US /ˈkɒləm/
noun 5
Definitions
noun
1
A solid upright structure designed usually to support a larger structure above it, such as a roof or horizontal beam, but sometimes for decoration.
2
A vertical line of entries in a table, usually read from top to bottom.
3
A body of troops or army vehicles, usually strung out along a road.
4
A body of text meant to be read line by line, especially in printed material that has multiple adjacent such on a single page.
It was too hard to read the text across the whole page, so I split it into two columns.
5
A unit of width, especially of advertisements, in a periodical, equivalent to the width of a usual column of text.
Each column inch costs $300 a week; this ad is four columns by three inches, so will run $3600 a week.
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