Former President Donald Trump met Friday with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orb谩n, as the likely Republican presidential nominee continued his embrace of autocratic leaders who are part of a global pushback against democratic traditions.
Orb谩n has become to some conservative populists for championing what he calls replete with restrictions on and . But he鈥檚 also cracked down on and judiciary in his country and rejiggered the country鈥檚 to keep his while maintaining the closest relationship with Russia among all European Union countries.
In the U.S., Trump鈥檚 allies have . On Thursday, as foreign dignitaries milled through Washington, D.C., ahead of President Joe Biden鈥檚 State of the Union address, Orb谩n skipped the White House and instead spoke at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank overseeing the 2025 Project, the effort to create .
鈥淪upporting families, fighting illegal migration and standing up for the sovereignty of our nations. This is the common ground for cooperation between the conservative forces of Europe and the U.S.,鈥 Orb谩n wrote on X, formerly Twitter, after his Heritage appearance.
He then flew to Florida, where met Trump late Friday afternoon at the former president鈥檚 beachfront compound, Mar-a-Lago. Orb谩n posted on his Instagram account footage of him and his staff meeting with Trump and the former president's staff, then of the prime minister walking through the compound and handing Melania Trump a giant bouquet of flowers.
In the video, Trump praised Orb谩n to a laughing crowd. 鈥淗e鈥檚 a non-controversial figure because he says, 鈥楾his is the way it鈥檚 going to be,鈥 and that鈥檚 the end of it. Right?鈥 Trump said of the Hungarian prime minister. "He鈥檚 the boss.鈥
The Trump campaign said late Friday that the two men discussed 鈥渁 wide range of issues affecting Hungary and the United States, including the paramount importance of strong and secure borders to protect the sovereignty of each nation.鈥
Campaigning Friday in Pennsylvania, Biden said of Trump: 鈥橸ou know who he鈥檚 meeting with today down in Mar-a-Lago? Orb谩n of Hungary, who鈥檚 stated flatly that he doesn鈥檛 thinks democracy works, he鈥檚 looking for dictatorship."
鈥淚 see a future where we defend democracy, not diminish it,鈥 Biden added.
Orb谩n鈥檚 approach appeals to Trump鈥檚 brand of conservatives, who have abandoned their embrace of limited government and free markets for a system that sides with their own ideology, said Dalibor Rohac, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.
鈥淭hey want to use the tools of government to reward their friends and punish their opponents, which is what Orb谩n has done,鈥 Rohac said.
The meeting also comes as Trump has continued to of all ideological stripes. He鈥檚 praised Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korea鈥檚 Kim Jong Un. Orb谩n鈥檚 government has reciprocated, the former president.
On Friday, Hungary鈥檚 Foreign Minister, P茅ter Szijj谩rt贸, posted from Palm Beach, hailing Trump鈥檚 鈥渟trength鈥 and implying that the world would be more peaceful were he still president.
鈥淚f Donald Trump had been elected President of the United States in 2020, the war in Ukraine, now in its third year, would not have broken out and the conflict in the Middle East would have been resolved much faster,鈥 he wrote.
Orb谩n has served as Hungary鈥檚 prime minister since 2010. The next year, his party, Fidesz, used its two-thirds majority in the legislature to rewrite the nation鈥檚 constitution. It changed the retirement age for judges, forcing hundreds into early retirement, and vested responsibility for appointing new judges with a single political appointee who was widely accused of acting on behalf of Fidesz.
Fidesz later authored a new media law and set up a nine-member council to serve as the country鈥檚 media regulator. All nine members are Fidesz appointees, which media watchdogs say has facilitated a major decline in press freedom and plurality.
The country鈥檚 legislative lines have been redrawn to protect Fidesz members and no major news outlets remain that are critical of Orb谩n鈥檚 government, making it almost impossible for his party to lose elections, analysts say.
Orb谩n backed Trump鈥檚 reelection effort and has had frosty relations with the Biden administration, which pointedly did not invite Hungary to a summit on democracy it organized after the president took office. Hungarian officials have accused Biden鈥檚 ambassador to the country, former human rights lawyer David Pressman, of interfering in internal governmental affairs.
Earlier this week, Hungary objected to Biden鈥檚 choice of a former Dutch prime minister to serve as NATO鈥檚 new commander, potentially stalling the appointment.
The Hungarian leader also has enthusiastically boosted Trump鈥檚 latest presidential campaign, posting a message encouraging Trump to 鈥渒eep fighting鈥 after he was hit with the first of what would be four criminal cases against him last year. Last week, Orb谩n declared that a win by the former president would be for ending the war in Ukraine.
A video from the Heritage appearance posted by Orb谩n鈥檚 political director showed the prime minister speaking with , a pharmaceutical entrepreneur who unsuccessfully ran for the Republican presidential nomination before dropping out and endorsing Trump. The Hungarian leader also met with , a former Trump adviser who remains a vocal ally of the ex-president and is active in global populist circles.
Orb谩n鈥檚 visit this week comes after he signed a new 春色直播 Sovereignty Law that penalizes any foreign support of political actors in Hungary, part of the prime minister鈥檚 longstanding battle against the European Union and international nonprofits criticizing his erosion of Hungary鈥檚 democracy.
鈥淥rb谩n is setting up this huge barrier to anyone interfering in Hungarian elections, but Orb谩n鈥檚 interfering in all sorts of other countries鈥 elections,鈥 said Kim Scheppele, a Princeton sociologist and Hungary expert.
Orb谩n is one of a small group of conservative populists who have in November. Last month, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele and Argentine President Javier Milei spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference just outside Washington. Orb谩n was a featured speaker at the 2022 event, after which he met Trump at the former president鈥檚 New Jersey golf course.
Several conservative populists have won European elections in recent years, including in Italy and Sweden. But leaders in those countries have remained staunch opponents of Russian President Vladimir Putin鈥檚 invasion of Ukraine, not battled with the European Union government or taken steps that alarm democracy advocates as Orb谩n has.
Scheppele said the parallels between Trump and Orb谩n go beyond ideology. She noted that Orb谩n is not very religious but has become a hero to Christian conservatives for his hardline stances, much like Trump.
The two men face a similar electoral quandary as well, she added.
鈥淭hey鈥檝e got the same problem,鈥 Scheppele said. 鈥淗ow do you leverage a really solid base, which is not an actual majority, at election time?鈥
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Riccardi reported from Denver and Spike from Budapest. Associated Press political writer Jill Colvin in New York contributed to this report.
