As a Trump Regime Media outlet, Newsmax was also a fan of right-wing Hungarian leader Viktor Orban, praising his 2022 re-election (while ignoring how he rigged elections to win it) along with other gushing over him. Some other examples of Newsmax’s praise over the past couple of years:
- Hungary’s Orban Bemoans Liberal ‘Virus’ at CPAC Conference
- Hungary’s Orban Sees Trump as Key to West’s Comeback
- Trump to Host Hungary’s Viktor Orbán at Mar-a-Lago
- Hungary’s Orbán: Soros-Backed Groups Press Europe for Money
When Trump endorsed Orban’s latest re-election effort, the apparently uniornically named Charlie McCarthy churned out praise in a Feb. 6 article:
President Donald Trump issued a strong endorsement of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, praising him as a “strong and powerful leader” and backing him for reelection ahead of Hungary’s closely watched parliamentary vote.
In a statement posted Thursday on Truth Social, Trump celebrated Orban’s record on border security, economic growth, and national sovereignty — issues that have made the Hungarian leader a hero to many conservatives across Europe and the United States.
“Highly Respected Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban, is a truly strong and powerful Leader, with a proven track record of delivering phenomenal results,” Trump wrote. “He fights tirelessly for, and loves, his Great Country and People, just like I do for the United States of America.”
Trump highlighted Orban’s focus on “Protect[ing] Hungary,” growing the economy, creating jobs, promoting trade, and “Stop[ping] Illegal Immigration,” while also emphasizing “LAW AND ORDER.”
Trump also pointed to the close relationship between the two leaders during his time in office.
[…]With Hungary’s election approaching quickly, Trump’s endorsement is likely to energize Orban’s base and further cement the alliance between America’s populist movement and European leaders pushing back against open borders and progressive ideology. —
Well, not so much — Orban lost the election, which Newsmax noted in a wire article. Fretting about it on behalf of Newsmax was Lucja Swiatkowski Cannon — who is described as “senior research fellow at the Institute of World Politics,” but the institute is actually a graduate school, where Cannon is an instructor there — in an April 21 article:
The most important aspect of Orban’s defeat is symbolic.
Since he was an ideological champion for national conservatism, his loss impacts similar movements around the world and raises doubts about their future.
But he lays to rest his ideological opponents’ accusations that he was an autocrat.
The election proceeded as planned and he conceded his loss gracefully.
[…]The European Union did everything possible for [Peter] Magyar’s victory. Aside from withholding enormous funds for ideological reasons, it gave propaganda support through its international media, the leftist NGOs (non-governmental organizations) and foundations, and even secret services.
Now it expects payback from Magyar’s with 27 concrete actions to reverse Orban’s legacy. First, it expects lifting of Hungarian veto on 90 billion euros loan to Ukraine, on sanctions against Russia, and on Ukraine’s membership application to the EU.Then, it expects Magyar to methodically dismantle the Orban political system and remove his appointees from office.
Cannon failed to explain how any of this is a bad thing.