It’s not pulling a rope

The expression is “toe the line,” and it means to conform to a standard or rule. It’s what the writer for Yahoo! Style should do:

tow the line style

Pulling the party line

Pulling the party line doesn’t make a lot of sense. But that doesn’t stop the reporter for Yahoo! News‘ “The Ticket” from using the expression:

It would be better if the Yahoo! News staffers were toeing the line by using the correct word. Just sayin’.