Bryan Leib is a Senior Fellow at the Budapest-based conservative think tank Center for Fundamental Rights at former Congressional candidate in his home state of Florida. He is a frequent guest in our country and a friend of our website. This time, he spoke about the imminently upcoming US presidential election: what is at stake, what the likely outcome is, and what US–Hungary relations would be like under the second Trump administration.
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Back in 2016 mainstream analysts predicted that your home state of Florida would be out of reach for Republicans because Donald Trump had alienated Latino voters. However, in 2022, Republican Ron DeSantis won the governor’s race by a wider margin than the Democrats won theirs in California, and President Trump is expected to carry the state by 8–10 points this cycle. How did the ‘experts’ get your state so wrong?
The political party registration numbers and dynamics have changed a lot since COVID. As Democratic governors were locking down their citizens during the pandemic, many fled to Florida, myself included! Republicans in Florida are going into election day on 5 November with over a million in registered Republican voter advantage over Democrats. Florida is going to deliver a massive victory for the Trump–Vance ticket.
In your recent article for Human Events, you wrote that ‘the stakes couldn’t be higher’ in this election. Could you elaborate on what you meant by that?
The stakes in the upcoming election involve securing America’s borders, achieving energy independence, and revitalizing the economy to reverse inflation and job loss. A return to Trump’s policies will ensure national security, bolster the US economy, and reinforce American strength on the world stage. Trump’s approach emphasizes ‘peace through strength’ and aims to curb crime, empower law enforcement, and counter our international adversaries.
How do you feel about the 2024 presidential race as a whole? Just like in his previous two cycles, President Trump is gaining a lot in national polling at the end of the campaign season.
I feel good and I predict President Trump will have the largest electoral college landslide victory in the history of American politics.
Now, you are on record in our first interview correctly predicting the winner of the 2024 Super Bowl. I don’t want you to lose your flawless prediction record with us. That would mean that Donald Trump takes at least 49 states, matching the result of Richard Nixon in 1972 and Ronald Reagan in 1984. Do you stand by your prediction?
I stand by my prediction. Donald J Trump is going to secure the largest electoral college landslide in the history of US politics on 5 November!
‘I feel good and I predict President Trump will have the largest electoral college landslide victory in the history of American politics’
It seems that President Trump has a special relationship with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of Hungary. He visited him at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida twice this year. How would you describe that relationship?
Based on my observations, their strong friendship is deeply rooted in respect for each other and shared values of putting their respective countries first by securing borders, ending mass migration, protecting the family units, and restoring peace on the world stage. As PM Orbán has said many times, President Trump is the only one who can restore peace on the world stage. During President Trump’s four years in the White House, there were no wars and in fact, peace broke out on the world stage.
You too have a special relationship with Hungarians. As a Senior Fellow at the Center for Fundamental Rights, you have come to our country multiple times, last time in early October for the second International Pro-Israel Summit in Budapest. Would you be interested in any kind of diplomatic work in Hungary in a second Trump administration?
Yes, I would be honoured to serve at the pleasure of President Donald J Trump and his administration in Budapest, and represent him and the United States of America. My first order of business would be to make sure our friends in Hungary’s government and civil society know that the United States will be looking to immediately rebuild bridges between Budapest and Washington DC. Our diplomatic relationship going forward would be based on mutual respect for each other’s countries and cultures. With President Trump back in the White House, we will see US–Hungarian relations return to a golden age. I would be honoured to play any role.
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