Survivor of Orbán’s 'autocracy' reveals 'key lesson' Dems need to learn to fight back

23 November 2024

President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance have both upheld Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán's regime as a model for Trump's second term in the White House. One former member of Hungarian parliament who witnessed Orbán's ascent is now pointing out ways Democrats can avoid the mistakes of Hungary's opposition.

In an essay for Politico, former Hungarian MP Gábor Scheiring noted that there are numerous similarities between Orbán and Trump. Both men are authoritarians bent on expanding executive power and crushing institutional opposition. Both are former presidents who lost elections and then returned to power. And both are strident culture warriors who are intent on dominating the media. Scheiring wrote that Orbán deployed populist "software" and "hardware" that paved the way for his far-right power grab, and alerted readers to watch for certain things that Trump will borrow from Orbán in the coming years.

In describing the "software of autocracy," Scheiring noted that the Hungarian leader exploited a "folksy outsider" label allowing him to pose as a populist hero of the working class, and noted that Trump has done the same on multiple occasions – like donning an apron and working the drive-thru window at a McDonalds restaurant. Orbán and Trump also share an intense anti-immigrant platform, and demonize immigrants as a means of dividing and conquering the working class while simultaneously playing on racist and xenophobic sentiment.

Another critical piece of "software" is "economic nationalism," with both Orbán and Trump combining cultural grievance politics with palpable frustration among their nation's working-class voters about economic insecurity. Scheiring observed that "right-wing populists glorify 'makers' over 'takers,'" which he said resonates with "working-class voters who value hard work."

"This narrative also serves to cement an alliance between plutocrats, billionaires and workers, which might seem paradoxical, but it isn’t," he continued. "They are all portrayed as hard-working value creators as opposed to 'lazy bureaucrats' and 'benefit scroungers.'"

Scheiring explained that the "hardware" of the far-right authoritarian state Orbán built in Hungary is fourfold: Strengthening executive power; disciplining the judiciary; changing election processes, controlling the media and controlling their political party. In accomplishing these four things, Orbán has managed to stay in power consistently since 2010. While Trump is almost 80 years old and is prevented from seeking a third term due to the 22nd Amendment, Scheiring warned that Trump copying his Hungarian counterpart could lead to MAGA cementing power for decades. He encouraged Democrats to focus their opposition on litigating Trump's policies in courts, fighting back at the state and local level and waging war in the media by inserting their own narratives.

"Hungary’s key lesson is you don’t protect democracy by talking about democracy — you protect democracy by protecting people," Scheiring wrote. "Only a democracy that works for the people is sustainable."

Click here to read Scheiring's full essay in Politico.

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