Orban is in my opinion very good at gaslighting both the EU and his domestic supporters. He talks shit about the EU at every possible opportunity, but then when he shows up for Council meetings in Brussels, he’ll usually sign up for whatever he’s asked that month. Then he goes back to Hungary and immediately tells voters that he gave the EU leadership hell and that he got a great deal for Hungary. This is mostly my opinion, but I think everyone in the EU expects this conduct from Orban, and they just go along with it for the sake of progress.
His voters on the other hand genuinely think that he’s a national hero for standing up to the no good, despicable, very bad EU leftist bureaucrats who also just happen to subsidise their economy. I kind of admire his batshit approach to politics, but disagree with everything he says. Basically, he’s all bark and no bite. Just ignore whatever mad shit he’s spouting and assume he’s saying it for the benefit of his deranged supporters and won’t follow through on it.
This is mostly my opinion, but I think everyone in the EU expects this conduct from Orban, and they just go along with it for the sake of progress.
My opinion is that the EU leaders secretly love him because he’s very useful. As an authoritarian and certified asshole he gets to veto things without too much consideration over his public image. He vetoes things the EU leaders want shut down so they can pretend they were totally gonna do it if not for that pesky Orban.
Orban is in my opinion very good at gaslighting both the EU and his domestic supporters. He talks shit about the EU at every possible opportunity, but then when he shows up for Council meetings in Brussels, he’ll usually sign up for whatever he’s asked that month. Then he goes back to Hungary and immediately tells voters that he gave the EU leadership hell and that he got a great deal for Hungary. This is mostly my opinion, but I think everyone in the EU expects this conduct from Orban, and they just go along with it for the sake of progress.
His voters on the other hand genuinely think that he’s a national hero for standing up to the no good, despicable, very bad EU leftist bureaucrats who also just happen to subsidise their economy. I kind of admire his batshit approach to politics, but disagree with everything he says. Basically, he’s all bark and no bite. Just ignore whatever mad shit he’s spouting and assume he’s saying it for the benefit of his deranged supporters and won’t follow through on it.
I hope you’re right. Every time I see Orban show up in the news it’s to vomit some new vileness.
My opinion is that the EU leaders secretly love him because he’s very useful. As an authoritarian and certified asshole he gets to veto things without too much consideration over his public image. He vetoes things the EU leaders want shut down so they can pretend they were totally gonna do it if not for that pesky Orban.