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While natalism as a political project has its proponents, few heads of state have been willing to attempt to use the full force of the state to raise birth rates. However, one leader does stand out: Hungary's recently-ousted prime minister, Viktor Orbán. This week, June and Josh take a look at Orban's 16-year term as PM, the effects of his policies, and the ways that right-wing authoritarianism in Europe both mirrors and partners with similar movements in the United States.
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EPISODE ART: Viktor Orbán, the former prime minister of Hungary.
AUDIO CLIPS:
- 1:08:34 – Marco Rubio speaking in Budapest in February 2026, declaring a "golden era" in relations between Hungary and the United States
- 1:14:09 – JD Vance calling Donald Trump at an April 2026 Viktor Orban election rally in Budapest
SOURCES:
- How Viktor Orban hollowed out Hungary’s democracy
- How Viktor Orbán’s Hungary Eroded the Rule of Law and Free Markets
- Hungary’s opposition struggles to beat Viktor Orban’s stealth autocracy
- Home Building Allowance for Families
- Viktor Orban’s pro-natalist policies are not working
- In a state of necessity. How has Orban changed Hungary
- Hungary passes constitutional amendment to ban LGBTQ+ public events
- Hungary Ends Legal Recognition for Transgender and Intersex People
- Hungary’s ongoing demographic decline: an increase in birth rates is the only hope
- Authoritarian Populism in Disguise: Orbán’s Anti-Worker ‘Pro-Worker’ Regime
- Hungary races to build border fence as migrants keep coming
- Orbán rejects the European Union’s migration agreement and defends keeping asylum seekers out of EU territory
- Conference of U.S. conservatives opens in Orban’s Hungary
- Hungary offered €30,000 to couples having 3 kids—but its birth rate has still fallen to a record monthly low
- Vance, after rallying in Hungary for Orban, says he wasn’t surprised by the autocrat’s defeat
- Hungary: Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced a seven-point family protection action plan
- Hungary’s New Leader Reveals Viktor Orbán Was Paying CPAC
- Here's why American conservatives are heading to Hungary for a big conference
- At CPAC, Hungary’s Orban decries LGBTQ+ rights, migration
- What one country's experiment says about attempts to boost birth rates
- Farewell To Hungary, And To Europe
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