About this episode
The episode discusses the connections between American and foreign authoritarian figures, focusing on Zbigniew Ziobro's flight to Hungary and the implications for democracy in the U.S.
If you are American, there is no particular reason you would have heard of Zbigniew Ziobro. He was one of the authors of the attempt to transform Poland into an authoritarian regime. When this was halted by the Polish elections of 2023, he fled to Hungary. At that time Hungary was ruled by Viktor Orbán, who was building what seemed like an unstoppable authoritarian order. Ziobro, wanted in Poland for serious crimes, was welcomed by Orbán. But then Orbán too lost a dramatic election, and had to hand over power on Saturday. When democracy wins, the losers go to America, it seems. What was left for Ziobro? The United States. You might not have heard of Ziobro, but Donald Trump has. One of the sad things about Trump’s attempt to bury American democracy is its lack of originality. The models are foreign, including people you have heard of, like Putin, people you likely have heard of, like Orbán, but also minor figures such as Ziobro. Ziobro is a wanted man with no passport. The Trump White House just went to a good deal of trouble to bring him to the US. This teaches us, once again, how much the Trump project us an international one. Americans are punished every day, but foreign…
People in this episode
Host: Timothy Snyder
Topics covered
- authoritarianism
- democracy
- political exile
- international relations
- American politics
Keywords
- Zbigniew Ziobro
- Viktor Orbán
- Donald Trump
- authoritarianism
- Poland
- Hungary
- democracy
- political exile
Mentioned in this episode
Places: Poland, Hungary, United States
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