Page 34 - The Economist

34 United States The Economist December 9th 2017
2 tor Orban were icy, chilled by the passage the “dangerous” decision of media outlets gressaccusingEgyptian authoritiesof arbi-
of laws curbing the independence of the linked to the Hungarian government to trary arrests, detentions, disappearances
press, the civil service and the courts. They publish the names of individual journal- and reported extrajudicial killings. But in
weremadeworsebyofficialattemptstore- ists deemed “threats” to the country. an unprecedented move the State Depart-
habilitate anti-Semitic Hungarian leaders A former Republican congressman ment froze nearly $100m in military and
from the second world war, and by Mr Or- who now works as a lobbyist for the Hun- economicaid to Egypt, citinghuman-rights
ban’s admiration for Vladimir Putin’s Rus- garian government, Connie Mack, sup- concerns, a move that a senior figure in the
sia. At one point in 2014, the State Depart- ported a handful ofmembersofthe House Obama administration applauds and calls
ment banned six Hungarian officials from of Representatives as they complained “a significantpiece ofpain to impose”. Sen-
entering America on suspicion of corrup- about the chargé d’affaires to RexTillerson, ators of both parties applied pressure to
tion—a dramatic step against a NATO ally. the secretary of state. Still, Mr Trump has the State Department, freezing some aid
OneofthemtriedtosueAmerica’stopdip- neither sided with Mr Orban nor yet wel- forEgypt on theirown initiative.
lomat in Budapest fordefamation. comed him to the Oval Office. Frustrated Mr Trump also secured the release of
Mr Orban is proud of being the first amid the chandeliered splendour of the Aya Hijazi, an American dual national
European leader to endorse Mr Trump, Hungarian embassy in Washington, Mr jailed on charges for which the authorities
says the Hungarian ambassador to Wash- Szabo calls his State Department critics offered no seriousevidence, afterfounding
ington, Laszlo Szabo. It is “very obvious” “old Obama administration technocrats” a charity to help street children. Her story
thatthe two leadersshare similarviews on whodonotspeakforMrTrump.Hungary’s caught Mr Trump’s attention—this is crazy,
defending their countries from illegal im- problems do not reach the president, he he told aides—and he proudly invited her
migrants, a term which the ambassador says. “Decisions about Hungary are not to the White House after her release. The
uses to cover the vast majority of those happeningat the levels we would like.” president, who is often highly interested in
whoreachedEuropeduringtherefugeecri- whetherhe, personally, will be given credit
sis of 2015. They also agree on the public’s Delta force for an action, has said nothing in public
yearning for strong, sovereign govern- Athird and final case studyinvolves Egypt, about the other 60,000 political prisoners
mentsthatstandupfortheirnationalinter- a large, important and problematic ally thought to languish in Egyptian cells.
ests with what Mr Szabo calls a “healthy whose strongman leader, Abdel Fattah al- AWhite House official says MrTrump’s
self-consciousness”. In April the Hungar- Sisi, has not found the new administration Egypt policy is proof that the president
ian parliament amended a higher-educa- as easy to handle as he seemed to expect. does work to promote human rights, de-
tion law in a way that threatened to close Few modern presidents have pressed spite his unconventional rhetoric. The ap-
down the Central European University Egypt hard on human rights, placing great- proach of President George W. Bush was
(CEU), a graduate institute founded by the er emphasis on the stability of the most “to verypubliclyendorse thisidea of push-
Hungarian-American billionaire, George populous Arab country, and on co-opera- ing democracy and freedom. You saw the
Soros, a bogeyman to conservatives on tion with the Egyptian military, intelli- Obama administration very publicly em-
both sides ofthe Atlantic. In June Hungary gence and counter-terrorist services. Rela- barrass leaders and say you must address
passed a law restrictingforeign funding for tions have been sweetened with tens of these human rights issues,” says the offi-
civil-society groups, again singling out Mr billions of dollars in American aid since cial. But thanks to behind-the-scenes pres-
Soros, and triggering legal action by the 1948, much ofit to buy weapons. sure, based on strong personal relations,
European Commission in Brussels, which Early expectations for Trump adminis- Mr Trump “gets the results”. This aide casts
believes the measure may breach EU fun- tration policy were not high. Mr Trump the president as a Reagan-like realist, treat-
damental rights. If Mr Orban expected to praised Mral-Sisi asa “fantasticguy” doing ing radical Islam as something akin to the
be thanked by the Trump administration a “fantastic job” under trying circum- communism of the age and working with
or Republicans in Congress for this assault stances, even as the State Department was imperfect allies, when necessary, to ad-
on MrSoros, he was disappointed. preparing a formal memorandum to Con- vance majorreforms, notablyin Saudi Ara-
A bipartisan group of senators, led by bia. “Look at the speeches that Bush and
Chris Murphy of Connecticut, told Mr Or- Obama gave, and nothingchanged.”
banthatthelawagainstCEUthreatensaca- Hardline nationalists in the president’s
demic freedoms. Hungary forgot that Con- inner circle, notably his senior adviser, Ste-
gress has no desire to encourage despotic phen Miller, and colleagues in the Domes-
attacksonthemanyAmericanuniversities ticPolicyCouncil, enjoyunusual clout dur-
with branches overseas. The Trump-era ing debates about refugees or UN reform,
State Department called the law on civil- leavingthem locked in whatone former of-
society groups “another step away” from ficial calls “open warfare” with NSC staff.
Hungarian commitments to the values of Despite this, democracy promotion
the EU and ofNATO. In Octoberthe Ameri- schemes continue on autopilot in many
canchargéd’affaires,oractingambassador countries, shielded by multi-yearbudgets.
to Hungary, David Kostelancik, delivered a How America projects its values has
blisteringspeechonpressfreedoms,decry- real-world effects, says Steve Pomper, who
ing the growing dominance of “pro-gov- worked on human rightsin the Obama-era
ernment figures” over the media, who NSC and is now at the International Crisis
quash articles critical of the government. Group. “It’s a choice: giving people reason
Treading a delicate path, Mr Kostelancik to hope iftheyare languishingin prison, or
conceded that “My president is not shy giving their jailers hope that they can act
about criticising the media when he be- with impunity.” Mr Trump’s instincts are
lieves reporters get it wrong or show bias,” causing “grievous damage,” concludes a
but noted that “in the finest traditions of senior administration official. But foreign
our free press”, the targets of Mr Trump’s autocrats are also learning that America’s
wrath often point out that “not every criti- president does not rule alone. “The presi-
cism of the government is ‘fake news’.” dent may scorn checks and balances,” says
Most pointedly, Mr Kostelancik deplored They froze how much? the official, “but we still have them.” 7