Last night, President Trump touted the success of Hungary's Viktor Orban. Apparently, that upset Hillary Clinton and she took to Twitter to let America know.
Not familiar with Viktor Orbán, the democracy-killing Hungarian dictator whose approval Trump touted on the debate stage last night?
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) September 11, 2024
Here's a good explainer.https://t.co/TtuD2HCXdi
The Hungary-Serbia border runs through a wilderness, tall grass flatlands ringed by imposing clusters of trees and thickets. When I visited a stretch of the Serbian side on a sunny day in June, the landscape would have been lovely — had it not been for the gigantic barbed-wire fence running straight through the middle of it.
The border fence had been built three years earlier on the Hungarian side, by the order of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who had sold it to the public as Hungary’s first line of defense against an “invasion” of asylum seekers during a massive surge in migration to Europe from conflict-ridden countries in 2015. Two years later, he sent a bill for the fence’s construction cost to Brussels, suggesting the European Union should repay Hungary for ”protecting all the citizens of Europe from the flood of illegal migrants.”
My translator Maté and I had abandoned our bug-covered car in a thicket on the way to the fence and trekked through the countryside on foot. We came across a clearing where two Afghan boys, Hashmat and Faiz, were living in a small, filthy tent on the Serbian side of the border. The Hungarian government employed them as translators for interviews of other asylum seekers. Though few cross the border into Hungary anymore, Hashmat and Faiz still live just outside the fence to be on call for the border authorities.
“Every night, raining. Every night, big problem here,” Hashmat told me.
Fear of refugees like these two had prompted the Hungarian government to go to extreme lengths to keep them out. The once-sleepy border with Serbia was militarized, with cameras and border police patrolling the length of it.
On the way back to our car, Maté and I saw a Hungarian police car pull up beside the fence. The officer got out and started yelling. Maté translated, explaining that the guard wanted me to stop taking pictures of the fence.
This kind of thing can happen to journalists at heavily policed borders. But this time, the guard asked something curious: Did we have a permit to be reporting here? This was not a requirement you’d expect in a European democracy; Hungary even has constitutional protections for the free press. I asked Maté about this; he said the permit was a requirement for taking photos of the fence — but if we had applied for one, it would have taken forever to be processed or simply been denied.
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If Hillary Clinton dislikes him, not only is he in danger, but he is probably a good person. Heh.
Dear Mrs. Clinton,
— Balázs Orbán (@BalazsOrban_HU) September 11, 2024
May I share with you what I think the death of #democracy is: the desire to imprison your political opponents, the failure to organize elections transparently, and the attempt to replace dissatisfied voters with migrant voters. Which country do you think this… https://t.co/0cGgnCg8BC
Orban had his own clap back.
This is remarkable. The political director of the Hungarian PM's office tells Hillary Clinton that, to all intents and purposes, the US is ceasing to be a democracy. https://t.co/2XkJNDTuQM
— Jonathan Eyal (@JEyal_RUSI) September 11, 2024
He's not wrong.
Hey @HillaryClinton … this you? https://t.co/UvkhXqn4fC pic.twitter.com/wFuWY8FBdP
— GayPatriot (@GayPatriot) September 11, 2024
Indeed, it is. If Democrats are talking, they are lying.
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