Viktor Orbán
Prime Minister of Hungary; model of “illiberal democracy” for the MAGA New Right and National Conservatism; guest of honor at NatCon Rome; used Hungarian state to systematically eliminate independent institutions; “get the power and keep the power”
Who He Is
Viktor Orbán (b. 1963) is the Prime Minister of Hungary, serving since 2010. He has transformed Hungary from a liberal democracy into what he openly calls an “illiberal democracy” — a system in which elections are held but the institutional independence of courts, media, universities, and civil society has been systematically dismantled to entrench the ruling party’s power.
For the MAGA New Right and National Conservatism, Hungary under Orbán functions as a proof of concept: evidence that a nationalist, socially conservative government can achieve and sustain power in a European democratic system by methodically dismantling the liberal institutions that would otherwise constrain it.
Postliberal Pilgrimage to Budapest
The Postliberal network’s admiration for Orbán is extensive and well-documented:
- Vermeule expressed excitement about Hungary during his visit in 2021; praised Orbán’s use of “public authority in the service of the common good”
- Gladden Pappin and Patrick Deneen published a “Dispatch from Budapest” (August 2022) — “Notes on a Conversation with Hungary’s Viktor Orbán.” They wrote of Orbán’s “remarkable candor,” his “remarkable analytic and even philosophical depth,” claimed to have witnessed “a genuine tour de force of political analysis and vision, a quality almost wholly absent in today’s American political class,” and stated: “Without question, Hungary is a singular example of such success in recent years.” They praised his turn away from “the liberal conception of freedom” and toward a Christian framework.
- Pappin later took a job as president of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs — the state-owned think tank advising Orbán — after declaring the US populist realignment a failure in spring 2023.
- Rod Dreher relocated to Budapest.
- Tucker Carlson traveled to Hungary to interview Orbán.
- Multiple NatCon conferences have featured Hungarian government officials and academics.
Nowhere did Vermeule, Deneen, or Pappin question the illiberal measures through which Orbán gained and consolidated power.
Hungary as Model
The model Orbán offers: judicial appointments stacked with loyalists, state media consolidated under government-friendly ownership, electoral districts gerrymandered to lock in majorities, NGOs and civil society organizations defunded or restricted, universities stripped of autonomy (CEU was pushed out of Hungary entirely).
NatCon Rome
At the Rome National Conservatism conference, Orbán was the guest of honor. Christopher DeMuth conducted a fawning interview. Orbán explained his philosophy of power: “get the power and keep the power.” When asked about the “immigration crisis of 2015” (the Syrian refugee crisis), he gestured zero — “In Hungary, we have this number of Muslim migrants” — and the crowd erupted in applause before he could continue. (He had previously referred to Syrian refugees as “Muslim invaders.”)
Significance for Field’s Argument
Field’s critique: DeMuth and other NatCon intellectuals showed no curiosity about the institutional manipulations by which Orbán achieved and maintained his power. This is the endpoint of the New Right’s anti-liberal political theory — a government that has systematically destroyed the institutional checks that liberal democracy relies on, and which the New Right intellectuals applaud as a model.
Cross-References
- National Conservatism — the American movement that holds Hungary as its model
- Gladden Pappin — became president of Hungarian Institute of International Affairs 2023
- Christopher DeMuth — interviewed Orbán at NatCon Rome
- Yoram Hazony — NatCon organizer; hosted Orbán
- Postliberalism — the broader anti-liberal political theory Orbán operationalizes
- Hard Right — Orbán’s governance methods overlap with Hard Right authoritarian politics