Here I would like to quickly jot down my first impressions of the European Parliamentary debate on the Sargentini Report that took place this afternoon in Strasbourg. The reason that I emphasize that this plenary session took place in Strasbourg is that Viktor Orbán, in his Facebook message to his people, announced that he was leaving for Brussels to fight for the honor of Hungary. I believe that the “mistake” was deliberate. By now, as a result of the constant pounding of government propaganda into Hungarian heads, Brussels has become shorthand for the evil European Union. Interestingly, that “little trick” didn’t escape the attention of Frank Engel from Luxembourg, who immediately put two and two together.

Viktor Orbán’s entrance into the chamber was also noteworthy. The proceedings had already started, but the Hungarian prime minister was nowhere. Judith Sargentini was the first to speak, and she had just expressed her disappointment that Orbán wasn’t in the chamber when the Hungarian “delegation” made its grand entrance. Again, I’m certain that his tardiness was deliberate. I suspect that he didn’t want to be one of the many arriving in the chamber because he is special. Also, I gather that he didn’t want to mingle or talk to anyone. But the idea of a grand entrance backfired. Sargentini stopped and began her speech afresh, this time with her regret that she was unable to shake hands with the Hungarian prime minister.

I found Orbán’s speech provocative. He continued in Strasbourg where he left off in Budapest: the Sargentini Report is the European Union’s revenge for Hungary’s position on immigration. He said he knows that the members of the European Parliament have already made up their minds and he will not be able to change their opinions. But, he said, he must impress on the members that “the report in front of you is an affront to the honor of Hungary and the Hungarian people.”

In the course of the debate EP politicians repeated time and again that Orbán deliberately conflated his government and his person with the country and the Hungarian people. As he put it, “You will condemn not a government but a country and a nation,” and he added that “Hungary is a member of the family of Christian European people.” Orbán then, seemingly forgetting that not only western European countries would be voting on the Hungarian case, went on to condemn “those who accuse Hungary who received democracy as an inherited right [and] who didn’t have to take any risks.” His message was blunt: “he rejects threats, slanders, and extortions by pro-immigration forces of Hungary and the Hungarian people.”

I think the biggest shock for Viktor Orbán came from Manfred Weber’s short remarks, in which he announced that although the EPP hasn’t yet crystallized its position on the issue, the EPP delegation is in favor of the Hungarian case being examined by the European Commission. That, in my opinion, means an endorsement of the Sargentini Report. I watched Orbán’s expression and could see that this was not what he expected. According to information coming from the EPP delegation, there is a good possibility that approximately half of the members will support the Sargentini Report. Yesterday, unexpectedly, Sebastian Kurz of Austria instructed his people in the EPP to vote for it.

One of the opponents of the Hungarian government complained about the unacceptable language of “your foreign minister” when talking about fellow politicians. Well, another Hungarian politician, József Szájer, a Fidesz member of the European Parliament, rose to demonstrate how a Hungarian gentleman delivers a speech in the European Parliament. His victim was Marie-Christine Vergiat (Front de Gauche), leader of the Confederal Group of the European Left-Nordic Green Left. Szájer addressed her directly: “You are a communist. Your comrades ruined my homeland. You’ve got a lot of moxie (van bőr a képén) to teach us about democracy and the rule of law.” His verdict on the Sargentini Report was succinct: a bunch of lies. It is not Hungary that endangers the rule of law but those who criticize the Hungarian government, for example, Judith Sargentini and all those who vote for her report. I really wonder how many friends this guy has in the European Parliament. I suspect very few.

There were some remarks that revealed an intimate knowledge of the Orbán regime and some frank ones that openly talked about Orbán’s nepotism and the enrichment of his family on money coming from the European Union. But here I can’t catalogue all of the short speeches. It’s time to turn to the prime minister’s response.

Viktor Orbán gave a press conference after the session ended in which he said that this whole discussion is “absurd” because “in the election campaign all political questions were debated and the voters decided.” Well, let me point out that during the campaign nothing was really debated, except that Hungary will not allow any migrants to settle in or even pass through the country. As for the results of the election, the observers of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe reported that the election wasn’t fair. And I haven’t said anything about an electoral law that is capable of producing a two-thirds majority in parliament from fewer than 50% of the votes.

At the press conference, the gist of his message was that the European People’s Party is in trouble; it has lost its character and its will. “It has become cautious, always pondering, and its members dance to the piping of the socialists and the liberals.” He would fix all that because he “would like to reform the European People’s Party.” We will see tomorrow whether the EPP wants to be reformed by Viktor Orbán or not.

Source: Hungarianspectrum