Analysts are raising alarms that Donald Trump’s second term is rapidly mirroring the authoritarian tactics of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, a leader long admired by the US president and his Maga movement. In the first weeks of his return to office, Trump has moved with extraordinary speed to fire critics, punish media, reward allies, and gut the federal government—actions that many deem unconstitutional and illegal. With Congress sidelined, only federal courts have slowed the pace.
Democratic Senator Chris Murphy noted the parallels, citing moves toward state-controlled media, a judiciary targeting political opponents, and the executive seizure of spending power. Orbán, who came to power in 2010, gradually dismantled institutions, rewrote the constitution, and brought 85% of Hungarian media under government control. His model of ‘illiberalism’ has long been praised by Trump allies including Vice-President JD Vance, Tucker Carlson, and the Heritage Foundation, whose Project 2025 blueprint shaped Trump’s agenda.
Orbán himself claimed his team has ‘deep involvement’ in Trump’s policy-writing, but even he may be surprised by the speed of Trump’s assault on democratic norms. On his first day back, Trump pardoned roughly 1,500 individuals involved in the 6 January 2021 Capitol insurrection, including those who assaulted police. He then dismissed federal prosecutors tied to investigations against him and hinted at mass firings of FBI agents involved in January 6 cases.
Bill Kristol, a former Reagan official, warned that flipping the narrative on January 6 and weaponising the justice department is ‘further than the norm and very dangerous’. He added that if Trump can purge thousands of FBI agents, the remaining force could be intimidated into carrying out political investigations. The threat, he said, ‘is much more real now than people anticipate’.
