The phrase 'Trickle Down' means [for something] to be distributed to someone or something in little bits at a time.
Example of Use: "Information about what happened finally trickled down to me."
As with many popular terms, the origin of the idiom 'trickle down' comes directly from the world of politics. It was first used as an adjectival phrase in 1944, but it dates back even further, to the days when American president Theodore (Teddy) Roosevelt introduced the idea of New Nationalism.