Rep. Steve King endorses Orbán’s struggle against “mixing cultures”

In a series of tweets Republican Congressman Steve King declared his desire to import Prime Minister Orbán’s ideas to the United States. “Diversity is not our strength,” King tweeted. “Assimilation has become a dirty word to the multiculturalist Left. Assimilation, not diversity, is our American strength.” Mr. King linked an article published by the Voice of Europe that quoted Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán saying that all cultures should not be mixed because it’s “against common sense.”

Mr. King’s tweet endorses Mr. Orbán’s struggle against “mixing cultures”

The 68-year-old Iowa Republican is vocal about limiting US immigration and openly supports far-right Dutch politician Geert Wilders, a friend of Mr. Orbán. Mr. King has also supported Mr. Orbán’s anti-Soros campaign and called George Soros a “Marxist billionaire.”

You may ask so why does a Congressman from Iowa follow Hungary’s Prime Minister?

The answer to the puzzle is ex-Ambassador Réka Szemerkényi. Ms. Szemerkényi befriended Mr. King and recruited him to the Hungarian-American Caucus. Although King has no Hungarian ancestry and few Hungarian-American constituents, he is still willing to support the Congressional Caucus. Mr. King is also a regular visitor at the Hungarian Embassy in Washington DC and met with Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó in the past.

Mr. King spoke at the Hungarian Embassy in Washington DC

Christopher Mathias of the Huffington Post compares King to White Nationalists and states that King’s views seem to be close to the KKK’s. (Read here.) King has received support from one-time KKK Grand Wizard, David Duke, who served 15 months in US federal prison for tax and mail fraud. In 2006 Duke toured Hungary promoting his book entitled Jewish Supremacism. (Read more about Mr. Duke’s Hungarian tour here.) In March Mr. Duke enthusiastically expressed his admiration for Mr. King and tweeted in all capital letters: “GOD BLESS STEVE KING!”

Ms. Szemerkényi, Mr. King (in the middle) and Mr. Szijjártó at the opening of the new Hungarian Embassy in Washington DC.

With supporters like Mr. King, Prime Minister Orbán will have a hard time positioning himself as a credible politician in the US. He is perceived more and more as a far-right populist who is drifting further away from mainstream conservative philosophies.

György Lázár

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