Noun
the long and short
(usually followed by of) The gist; the essence or substance; the most important or salient features.
The speech went on for hours, but the long and short of it is that not much has changed since last year.
The long and short of it is, we need more rigor in all kinds of programs. Margaret Spellings
The long and short of it is that I am now in a position in England to green light movies, and that's really excellent - not high-budget movies, but movies none the less. Idris Elba