Hungary is now a Dictatorship

[Labster]

Everyone's favorite half of Austria-Hungary has passed a sweeping new law allowing President Viktor Orbán to rule the nation by decree, as a response to the new coronavirus crisis.  Bill highlights include:

• Indefinite duration of rule by decree
  
• Returning to normal rules requires 2/3 vote, plus assent of the President
  
• Elections may not take place until normal rules reestablished
  
• Also includes jail terms of up to 5 years for journalists "spreading misinformation"
  
• Political demonstrations also criminalized
  
• President may suspend enforcement of any law
  

So if you've been paying attention to Hungary lately, this shouldn't be all that surprising.  This is, after all, the country that criminalized the act of a lawyer representing an immigrant in court.  Most of the people who couldn't tolerate the authoritarian rule have already left to other countries in the EU.

It does bring to mind the ancient custom of dictatorship in ancient Rome, but this was always for a fixed term, or at least with the continued consent of the Senate.  And power was given for a specific cause; other authority remained with the Senate, comitia, and magistrates.  This seems to go far beyond that, to the modern concept of an authoritarian dictatorship.

So now a member state of the EU and NATO is a fully realized dictatorship.  Discuss.

[Matrix Dragon]

Everyone saw it coming, but it's still depressing and horrifying.

[classicdrogn]

The antipresident might be enough of a numpty to be surprized by it, but he probably also thinks it's a positive step to allow for decisive, effective leadership and wishes the deep state and its liberal shill media would let him do the same.

[Star Ranger4]

Well, I can't say I'm surprised that at least one person succeeded at this kind of power grab. I'm surprised there has not been more attempts at this sort of thing reported.

[Black Aeronaut]

What I'm curious about is what the rest of the EU is going to do about it. I would have thought that they'd have conditions on being member-states that prohibit this sort of malarkey. You know. Checks and balances. Kinda like the same ones that the screaming orange thinks aren't fair.

[nocarename]

It looks like the tool of choice with in the EU is called Article 7. It has some suspension of rights of the country within the EU, but no mechanism to--as an example--kick them out. Countries have to leave on their own.

The arguments are, of course, about if what has already been triggered against Hungary for their earlier acts was actually a legal vote. So that's fun.

[Black Aeronaut]

Lemme take a wild guess.

Someone is screaming about conspiracies and left-wing agendas, aren't they?

[nocarename]

Vote counting apparently. Debate comes down to if 2/3s should include abstaining votes or not apparently. It was quite close either way.