On their flight to Washington, DC, to meet with President Trump and his team, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of Hungary and Executive Director of the Center for Fundamental Rights Miklós Szánthó held a brief on-camera discussion. The interview was released on Saturday, 8 November, as part of the Center’s Hour of Justice Special.
Orbán was first asked about his efforts to dismantle the so-called ‘deep state’ in Europe and how they compare to similar initiatives by President Trump in Washington. He explained that the term ‘deep state’ can refer to two different political phenomena: unelected, long-standing government bureaucrats resisting changes mandated by a new administration, or networks of NGOs promoting a progressive agenda, which he referred to as the ‘Soros system’. According to Orbán, the bureaucratic aspect is more prevalent in the United States, while the NGO network is more prevalent in Europe.
He noted that with President Trump’s second term, the US system began to be dismantled, both the bureaucratic and the NGO. Orbán pointed to recent changes in Hungary as well, highlighting the defunding of the US-funded, anti-Fidesz broadcaster Szabad Európa Radio. He added that individuals formerly employed at American progressive NGOs are now often finding positions in Brussels, funded by European taxpayers.
The Prime Minister also discussed how the political left has an advantage in international coordination over the right. He suggested this is partly because such efforts began earlier on the left and partly because left-leaning actors are less constrained by patriotism, making cross-border collaboration easier. Despite these challenges, he noted that Hungarian–American cooperation under President Trump’s second administration progressed rapidly, while similar alliances among European nations are more difficult to establish. PM Orbán cited the foundation of the European Parliament group Patriots for Europe as an effort to bridge that gap.
Orbán told Director Szánthó that the ideological alignment between the current Hungarian and American governments has smoothed negotiations on energy policy. As the Prime Minister put it, the Trump administration is ‘running the same experiment’ that Hungary has pursued since 2010: building a patriotic, right-wing populist nation rooted in Judeo-Christian values. Orbán described the relationship between the Hungarian and American leadership as that of ‘friends in arms’.
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