Reading George Orwell as a young person taught me the value of precision in language, and how language itself can fall victim to insincere communicators who twist and torture words in order to obscure truth for their own political purposes.

Tucker Carlson’s use of his phrase “Legacy Americans” to describe those he designates as the victims of the great Replacement Theory is an interesting linguistic gambit, one that I wish Orwell were here to help explain for us.

Tucker has advocated fiercely for Replacement Theory, although since the horrific racist gun massacre in Buffalo, NY on May 14, he’s made some fumbling attempts to walk back his position.

But who are “Legacy Americans”? He uses the phrase without defining it, which is a good trick used by shifty folks who wish to say what they want to say while evading responsibility.  

I think we know. Legacy Americans are white folks who have held power for a long time, who now fear losing that power to demographic changes. Those changes are happening, and not because, as the Theory tells us,  Jews and liberals are masterminding those changes in order to enjoy political windfalls.

I mean, Replacement Theory is just white supremacy with a fancy new suit on. But if you go around saying you’re defending the interests of white supremacists, people give you funny looks at parties.

What other phrase can you use? “Original Americans?” That doesn’t work, because it makes you reflect upon the inconvenient insight that the first great replacement in this country was white folks replacing (by eradicating and marginilizing) the indigenous peoples who were here for thousands of years.

You could say “Non-Jewish, non-Hispanic, non-Black citizens.” But that … well, it just makes you sound like a Negative Nancy.

It doesn’t leave you much, which is why Tucker has invented the phrase “Legacy Americans,” which he will continue to use but never define, even though the phrase vaguely makes me think of commemorative Presidential plates.

So all credit to Tucker for inventiveness. And for being a smug trust fund dingus who should have just gone for it and traded in his bow tie for the requisite white robes and conical hat.

And to paraphrase Simon and Garfunkel: “Where have you gone, George Orwell? Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you.”