This story first appeared in NPR's live blog of the presidential debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. See how the night unfolded.
Former President Donald Trump cited his close ties to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to counter attacks by Vice President Harris in Tuesday night's presidential debate that world leaders are “laughing” at Trump.
“Let me just say about world leaders, Viktor Orbán, one of the most respected men, they call him a strong man. He's a tough person. Smart prime minister of Hungary. They said, Why is the whole world blowing up?” Trump said.
“He said, ‘Because you need Trump back as president. They were afraid of him. China was afraid.’ And I don't like to use the word afraid, but I'm just quoting him. 'China was afraid of him. North Korea was afraid of him.' Look at what's going on with North Korea, by the way. He said 'Russia was afraid of him,' ” he added.
The response reflected Trump’s ongoing embrace of autocratic leaders.
Orbán, who has turned into a hero of Trump’s followers and other conservative populists, is known for his restrictions on immigration and LGBTQ+ rights. He’s also cracked down on the press and judiciary in his country while maintain a close relationship with Russia.
“He's trying to, again, divide and distract from the reality, which is it is very well known that Donald Trump is weak and wrong on national security and foreign policy,” Harris said. “It is well known that he admires dictators, wants to be a dictator on day one, according to himself. It is well known that he said of Putin that he can do whatever the hell he wants and go into Ukraine.”
Trump charged back that Russian President Vladimir Putin supports Harris.
“Putin endorsed her last week,’’ Trump said, arguing that it was a serious statement though many experts claimed it was part of Russia’s disinformation campaign for Trump’s benefit.
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