Critics are horrified as Trump endorses strongman Viktor Orbán in Hungarian election
In Hungary, far-right strongman Viktor Orbán is seeking a fourth consecutive term, and he is enjoying the endorsement of former U.S. President Donald Trump.
In an official statement released this week, Trump declared, “Viktor Orbán of Hungary truly loves his country and wants safety for his people. He has done a powerful and wonderful job in protecting Hungary, stopping illegal immigration, creating jobs, trade, and should be allowed to continue to do so in the upcoming Election. He is a strong leader and respected by all. He has my Complete support and Endorsement for reelection as Prime Minister.”
Trump isn’t the only one in the MAGA movement who has openly supported the authoritarian Orbán, who has also been praised by Fox News host Tucker Carlson. But one right-wing conservative who has been vehemently critical of Carlson and Trump for their praise of Orbán is veteran columnist/author and Never Trumper Mona Charen, who worked in the Reagan White House during the 1980s and was a speechwriter for First Lady Nancy Reagan.
INBOX: Trump endorses Hungarian PM Viktor Orban for re-electionpic.twitter.com/aDY9YXTvfS— Julia Manchester (@Julia Manchester) 1641217332
In a scathing article published by The Bulwark on August 11, 2021, Charen argued that Carlson was no better than American leftists who visited Cuba during the 1960s and 1970s and openly praised communist dictator Fidel Castro. Charen wrote, “As someone who was weaned on stories of leftist intellectuals and journalists traipsing off to communist countries to pay obeisance, I can only shake my head as a parade of right-wingers are making their way to Hungary to sing the praises of authoritarian Viktor Orbán. Tucker Carlson of Fox News is the highest profile rightist to make the trek, but the path was already well-trod.”
Orbán, like Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan, embodies a form of far-right authoritarianism that pretends to be democratic but is, in fact, quite oppressive. Technically, Orbán, Putin and Erdogan do not enjoy dictator-for-life status the way that Gen. Francisco Franco did in Spain, but they have undermined checks and balances in their countries to such a degree that voting them out of office becomes next to impossible — no matter how much they pretend to support democratic elections. And the MAGA movement is trying to implement this authoritarian model in the United States by making sure that only Trump loyalists are in charge of election administration.
Here are some responses to Trump's endorsement of Orbán:
1. The sad thing about Trump's endorsement of Orban is how unsurprising it is. In my book After the Fall, I start with the parallels between the GOP and Orban because we aren't headed for a Hungary model - we are almost there. This has been Orban's playbook:pic.twitter.com/HlAgNQSjM2— Ben Rhodes (@Ben Rhodes) 1641225384
This is certain to bring in the all-important undecided Hungarian voter.— D.S. "Learn Truth from Facts" Hardy (@D.S. "Learn Truth from Facts" Hardy) 1641228521
Well they held #CPAC there so I think they mostly have committed to Eastern European Authoritarianism as a form of government.— Dennis William Grimes (@Dennis William Grimes) 1641230436
Donald Trump just endorsed Viktor Orban. Orban is an anti-Semitic, racist, authoritarian despot who has crushed democratic institutions in Hungary, attacked the free press, and politicized rule of law. No wonder Trump likes him.— Brian Klaas (@Brian Klaas) 1641226474
Well they held #CPAC there so I think they mostly have committed to Eastern European Authoritarianism as a form of government.— Dennis William Grimes (@Dennis William Grimes) 1641230436
From today's NYT: "Leaders in the European Union now widely consider one of their own, Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, an existential threat to a bloc that holds itself up as a model of human rights and the rule of law."https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/03/world/europe/eu-hungary-threat.html\u00a0\u2026— Shane Goldmacher (@Shane Goldmacher) 1641217961
The Republican Party is fascist. It\u2019s not even a surprise, so we have to stop acting like we are shocked. It\u2019s been a long time coming according to data scientists. What will we do about it?https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yCswlnIeufQ&feature=youtu.be\u00a0\u2026— Protect Democracy (@Protect Democracy) 1641238335
John McCain on Victor Orban: \u201ca neo-fascist dictator"\n\nDonald Trump on Orban: \u201cHe is a strong leader and respected by all. He has my Complete support and Endorsement\u201d\n#NeverOrban #NeverTrump— Republicans against Trumpism (@Republicans against Trumpism) 1641224530
"We're like twins!" said Trump when he met Orban. My 2019 @guardian piece: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/may/16/trump-orban-democracy-us-hungary\u00a0\u2026\nNow the GOP has embraced Orban's electoral autocracy as a model. Read: "Tucker Carlson & Viktor Orban Plan Our Fascist Future" https://lucid.substack.com/p/tucker-carlson-and-viktor-orban-plan\u00a0\u2026https://twitter.com/AliVelshi/status/1478028153532698627\u00a0\u2026— Ruth Ben-Ghiat (@Ruth Ben-Ghiat) 1641225642
Few days before January 6, the anniversary of his shameful attempt to dismantle democracy in the US\u2014 Trump endorses Orban, the guy who *successfully* dismantled democracy in Hungary.https://twitter.com/shanegoldmacher/status/1477997873010819078\u00a0\u2026— Katalin Cseh (@Katalin Cseh) 1641224395
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