These Conservatives will do anything to keep power

I was also appalled that the British Conservative Party voted to defend their crony, Orban, from this motion. They were the only ruling party in Europe to make this decision, and they permanently expelled two of their suspended MEPs after not voting with their group, but with their conscience. Their Machiavellian motivation is clear - they need all the support they can get from member states to get their botched plan for Brexit through the Council. The Conservatives think that the smartest thing they have done in the negotiation is to pivot away from the Commission and appeal to individual member states. They are dividing and they think it will help them to rule. A Conservative politician told the Independent: “No one will say it publicly, but it’s clear that we are going to gain brownie points with people who might be able to help us in the Brexit negotiations.” And there it is – the Conservatives will stoop so low as to put their increasingly desperate Brexit plans before the defence of human rights on their own doorstep.

There has been widespread condemnation of the Conservatives standing up for their dictator friend, Orban, and they have been left scrambling to dilute and justify their stance. The Independent reported that they immediately felt the need to clarify that they did not support Orban, but that it was a legal, technical issue. Daniel Dalton, a Conservative MEP, then doubled down on this logic in an article for the Telegraph. This article (paywall) is some bizarre attempt to justify their vote, suggesting that it is a matter of legal technicality that led them to become apologists for a dictator - a cynical attempt to cover over their trading of values for support.

The European Parliament sent a strong signal to those who want to keep EU benefits and not its obligations. In fact, it sounds a bit like the Conservative UK government and its attempt at cherry-picking the economic benefits of EU membership. But this episode shows that EU has always been more than a mere common market; it is a community based on fundamental values. If the Conservatives or Fidesz cannot grasp that, they should move aside for political groups that can.