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CPAC Kicks Off With Poland, Hungary Events

MAY 29 2025·Updated MAY 30 2025

CPAC Kicks Off Poland, Hungary Conferences

Story

Above: The VIP entrance to the building of the Budapest Congress Center during an offshoot meeting of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Budapest, Hungary, on May 29, 2025. Image credit: Attilla Kisbenedek/Contributor/AFP via Getty Images

The Facts

After holding an event in Poland on Tuesday, the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) kicked off an event in Budapest on Thursday hosted by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, joined by American and European conservative figures.
ABC News
Reuters
Orbán delivered the opening address, U.S. President Donald Trump praised Orbán in a video message as a "strong man," who in turn spoke of a "conservative renewal" in Europe and "a civilizational turn." Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem endorsed Karol Nawrocki in the upcoming Polish presidential election.
ABC News
Hungary Today
Notable attendees include the son of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Jair Netanyahu, Dutch politician Geert Wilders, and American conservative commentator Ben Shapiro. Members of the European Parliament’s Patriots for Europe alliance, which includes France's National Rally and Orbán's own Fidesz party, will also be in attendance.
Harici
Telex
Orbán, in reference to the Polish presidential runoff on Sunday, said that the country was "stomping on constitutional values." Orbán also spoke out against extending EU membership to Ukraine, "mass migration," and in favor of more national sovereignty.
Hungarian Conservative
Hungary Today
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said that his country was part of the "real West" that was under attack from "liberal fascism" and "foreign-fueled ideology." Kobakhidze, whose party Georgian Dream pushed EU membership efforts until 2028, also reiterated his commitment to European integration.
Civil Georgia
OC Media
CPAC chairman Matt Schlapp, speaking in Budapest, said that more global CPACs are in the works in Japan, Australia, and Latin America. This year marks the fourth annual CPAC Hungary conference, while Tuesday's was the first ever held in Poland.
NPR
Hungarian Conservative
NPR

Sources Split

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The Spin

Left narrative

The European expansion of CPAC has spread the malign influence of Trumpism and illiberalism, weakening Europe and the post-war international order. Orbán, whose autocratic tendencies have led to democratic backsliding in Hungary, is a perfect figurehead for a movement that revolves around strongman leaders and a disregard for human rights.

NPR Online News

Right narrative

President Trump has sparked a global movement that stands in opposition to the elites and globalists. Never before have Western conservatives been so energized, motivated, and rising to the challenges posed by mass migration, foreign interference, and the anti-family, anti-faith policies pushed by the old order against everyday people.