Hungarian politics is back!
...and it's still boring AF
Hello and Happy New Year from the Muse!
The Wacky Shit Show, commonly referred to as Hungarian politics, is gearing up for a great 2025 season. It has already started, so let me give you this year’s first tour of the lunatic asylum. Our main characters are still Viktor Orbán, our dearest leader, the Genius of Europe, Wonderful, Counsellor, the Prince of Peace. Fighting out of the opposite corner is Péter Magyar, ex-husband of the former Justice Minister who started his party last March and became the first credible challenger of Orbán’s 15-year rule.
New laws and Magyar’s struggle to stay in the news
Orbán is concerned about the growing popularity of Magyar’s party, so he decided to lavish money on the fragmented old opposition parties in Parliament. However, the small parties rejected this toxic gift and pledged to donate it to charity. Despite this, Magyar responded with an angry Facebook post that was only slightly more polished than Trump's occasional 2:30 AM rant on Truth Social.
Quite predictably, the opposition parties responded with gusto, as this was an ample opportunity to remind the public that they still existed. The feud ended in about three days, but Péter Magyar should learn the lesson because Orbán lured him in this political sucker punch with ease.
Magyar is busy maintaining his hard-earned grip on the public discourse. Now that his political honeymoon is over, he is learning how difficult it is to be heard amid the staggering amount of white noise Orbán’s propaganda machine creates.
Last week a convicted felon caused a traffic incident in Budapest. Several people were injured. The perpetrator was convicted of human trafficking. Last year the government decided to release foreign human traffickers if they pledged to go home and report to the prison at home. Yes, you read what you read, this is not a joke. Well, it is, a bad one, enacted in Hungary. It was only a matter of time before one of these fine gentlemen came back. They did in their big black Audis and BMW, and it was also only a matter of time before they ended up in a nighttime car accident.
Magyar is desperately attempting to escalate this situation into a major scandal, but so far, he has had limited success. The overwhelming sensory overload created by the propaganda makes it difficult to break through, and Magyar is coming to learn this the hard way.
Some big reforms are underway, including introducing a new law for the land cadaster and improved internet access to government services. However, credible sources tell me that these new systems are in disarray just days before they go online. I am eagerly awaiting the official explanation for these failures. Could it be due to Soros, the EU, or US Ambassador Pressman, who has been a thorn in Orbán's side?
Pressman goes home but leaves an unwelcome parting present
Pressman is a senior member of the Democratic Party’s diplomatic corps who is leaving the station to be replaced by Bryan E. Leib. The post of US Ambassador in Budapest is usually given to a generous campaign donor. During the first Trump presidency, New York-based billionaire David Cornstein held the post because of his generous contributions to the Trump campaign.
Pressman is an exception. He is a career diplomat with extensive experience dealing with tough figures like Orbán. He has stirred up considerable turmoil by daily provoking Orbán's associates. In contrast, Leib is a devout and observant Trump supporter. More importantly, he has been working here under the payroll of Alapjogokért Központ (Center for Fundamental Rights), which serves as Orbán's ideological think tank and functions like a cheerleading squad for Donald Trump.
Is everything just peachy between the USA and Hungary? Well, no. Pressman’s parting gift was the announcement that the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control has placed signor caporegime Antal Rogán on the SDN list.
Who is Rogán, and what is the significance of this decision?
Rogán is the Cabinet Minister and essentially acts as the eminence grise to the Orbán’s Royal Court. He coordinates the vast propaganda machine and oversees the Hungarian golden visa programs. The Master of Corruption, he acts as the liaison between Orbán and the investors and businesspeople seeking to engage in shady deals with him.
Putting him on the list is a low blow for Orbán. It jeopardizes a lot of background deals where a clean status is essential. More importantly, although ambassador-in-waiting Leib called the move “revolting” and Orbán’s people expressed high hopes that Rogán would be quickly removed from the list, the situation might be more complicated.
First, asking Trump for favors is dangerous, and no politician in his right mind should do that. Trump is a shrewd businessman, and power is his first and only principle. If Orbán needs a favor, he might as well call Trump "Godfather," kiss his hand, and kneel.
Additionally, the U.S. government has placed several Chinese tech giants on the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list, including CATL, which is currently constructing a large factory in Debrecen, Eastern Hungary. It is highly unlikely that Trump would want to reverse this decision. He might even request a small favor from Orbán in exchange for clearing Rogán’s name: removing these Chinese companies from the country. Our Chinese partners are unlikely to be pleased with this.
Beautiful írás🙌🏻 áldás