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In theory, voting rights could be suspended. In practice, democracy is only checked on entreance.

Also, I think that Fidesz is benefitting from being part of EPP.

Politico appears to agree:

EPP ♥ Orbán - POLITICO

European institutions are pushing back. The European Parliament endorsed a highly critical report on Hungary in June 2013 and, earlier this month, again voted to condemn Orbán's recent actions. The Council of Europe published a highly critical report on Hungary's Constitutional Reforms in 2013, and this month published a new report criticizing xenophobia and violence against minorities and immigrants in Hungary. The European Commission has launched a series of legal actions against Hungary. But none of this has deterred Orbán.

To understand why the EU has been so ineffective in opposing Orbán's drive to consolidate power, one must look first to the leadership of the European People's Party (EPP), the center right faction in the European Parliament of which Orbán's Fidesz party remains a member in good standing. Leading figures in the EPP are sheltering the Orbán regime in the name of partisan politics. In the interest of party loyalty and of maintaining their majority in the European Parliament, many EPP politicians have proven themselves willing to tolerate Orbán's violations of democratic values.

by fjallstrom on Mon May 2nd, 2016 at 04:23:18 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Indeed. But it's not just Orbán and the EPP: now, one way or another, the entire Visegrád group and Romania have or have had governments flouting democratic norms in ways similar to Orbán's regime, and the entire group has now found unison in anti-refugee xenophobia. And that includes Robert Fico of Slovakia, the black sheep of SD who is tolerated the same way EPP shields Orbán.

*Lunatic*, n.
One whose delusions are out of fashion.
by DoDo on Mon May 2nd, 2016 at 05:30:59 AM EST
[ Parent ]
Those who believed in a Social Europe should rue the day they were conned into supporting incorporation of the Visegrad group of countries into the EU. The just handed over the keys to the castle to the barbarians, even if with a time delay. If there were one thing that could be undone that would be it. Where is The Terminator when you need him?

"It is not necessary to have hope in order to persevere."
by ARGeezer (ARGeezer a in a circle eurotrib daught com) on Mon May 2nd, 2016 at 11:47:50 AM EST
[ Parent ]
I'm afraid that is one more thing we have the Brits to thank for.  Their strategy was to prevent the deepening of the Union by diluting it with the addition of 10 eastern members and also by making it essentially ungovernable by requiring unanimity amongst 28 members before major decisions could be made.  The EU also played into the US/|UK post cold war strategy of isolating Russia by encroaching right up to its borders.

None of this had any regard for "the social market", or the development of a cohesive EU demos.  Indeed quite the reverse: it was to ensure that the Brit strategy of restrict the development of the EU to a glorified single market within which the Brits could play their imperialist games.

It would be wrong, however to blame the US/UK entirely for this.  EU conservatives and nationalists were more than happy to play along with their post cold war imperialist games...

Index of Frank's Diaries

by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot male dotty communists) on Mon May 2nd, 2016 at 03:03:39 PM EST
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