Trump Endorses Viktor Orban, Hungary’s Far-Right Prime Minister
The New York Times
Democracy in Hungary has been backsliding under Mr. Orban, whose efforts to consolidate power have caused consternation in the European Union.
Former President Donald J. Trump endorsed Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orban, on Monday, formally pledging his “complete support” to a far-right foreign leader who has touted turning his country into an “illiberal state.”
Mr. Orban and his party have steadily consolidated power in Hungary by weakening the country’s independent and democratic institutions — rewriting election laws to favor his Fidesz party, changing school textbooks, curbing press freedoms, overhauling the Constitution and changing the composition of the judiciary.
The actions have caused consternation in the European Union, to which Hungary belongs, but also made Mr. Orban something of a cause célèbre in conservative American political circles, following years of an aggressive influence operation to bolster his image in the United States.
