the root of the issue

the root of the issue

The underlying cause or fundamental essence of some issue, problem, or difficulty at hand. Our team of professionals will walk you through a troubleshooting process that will help get to the root of whatever issue you're experiencing with your device. Here's the root of the issue, Bill—we feel that you haven't been meeting the standards of work that we expect of you recently. If the politicians in Washington would stop all their games and mudslinging for a minute might actually be able to solve the root of the issues affecting our country.
See also: issue, of, root
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
See also:
  • root of the problem
  • the root of the problem
  • the crux of the matter
  • crux
  • crux of the matter
  • crux of the matter, the
  • root of the matter
  • root of the matter, the
  • the heart of the matter
  • the root of the matter
References in periodicals archive
However, this recent suggestion may be dangerous [as] the root of the issue is not financing but the affordability of houses.
Mr Henley says a lack of resources is at the root of the issue, with the police and Crown Prosecution Service struggling to cope with the consequences of years of cuts.
The latest one is his third and now the Lakers are looking into the possibility that the Big Baller Brand shoes may be the root of the issue. 
"I think a lot of the companies feel like they're doing diversity or equity inclusion work in a good way but aren't really tackling the root of the issue, which is that the people they go to for assistance with addressing diversity issues and filling positions look the same as they do."
Olmem said that the operators try to get to the root of the issue when speaking with callers.
The report was submitted in line with MLIT's direction to do so after establishing dedicated teams to conduct a full and comprehensive investigation of new facts and considering appropriate countermeasures following confirmation of any other potential nonconformities in the kanken process...Following the investigations into the factors and background that have caused misconduct in sample testing, Nissan's view is that the root of the issue is the same as last year's kanken issues.
These involve assembling the geared turbofan engine using combinations of old and new designs of faulty parts to help locate the root of the issue, according to one of the people.
One way Sue helps people overcome phobias is to take her clients back to the root of the issue.
It's simple - we must focus on the root of the issue and there are simply not enough houses being built, not by the State anyway.
It is important that we get to the root of the issue first before throwing a tantrum about something that normally are just petty things and misunderstandings.
While many theories abounded, the number of variables made it difficult to get to the root of the issue. Failures were often attributed to the wrong party, such as blaming the contractor rather than the designer.
Although, Yahoo may cite security concerns at the root of the issue - and it may be true to some extent, given the hacking involving over a billion accounts in 2013 - the possibility of making attempts to force customers to its mail page in order to appease its dwindling crowd of advertisers cannot to ruled out.
If the root of the issue is not addressed, then no matter how many more decades the war against the PKK continues or how many more Kurdish MPs are imprisoned, then we will merely see history repeating itself over and over again.
Mediation helps to repair working relationships by getting to the root of the issue. The mediator, a trained, neutral thirdparty, employs enhanced communication techniques to help parties better understand each other's concerns and works with them to collaboratively shape a workable solution.