Hungarian far-right Prime Minister Viktor Orbán delivered the keynote address Thursday as the American Conservative Political Action Conference — or CPAC — opened its annual conference. The Republican-aligned group chose Budapest, Hungary, for this year’s gathering in order to pay homage to Orbán, a far-right authoritarian who recently won a fourth term in office. Orbán frequently references the same “Great Replacement” ideology cited by the white supremacist shooter who killed 10 people at a supermarket in Buffalo last weekend. In his speech to CPAC, he railed against LGBTQ+ movements and said U.S. conservatives should be prepared to fight over the next presidential election.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán: “Progressive liberals, neo-Marxists dazed by the woke dream, people financed by George Soros and promoters of open societies, they want to annihilate the Western way of life that you and we love so much. … We have to take back the institutions in Washington and Brussels. We must find allies in one another and coordinate the movement of our troops as we face a big test. 2024 will be a decisive year.”
Also appearing at CPAC Thursday was Fox News personality Tucker Carlson, who praised Orbán in a prerecorded video. Former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, who served under President Trump, is addressing CPAC today.