David Pressman
@ambpressman.bsky.social
Former United States Ambassador to Hungary & United States Ambassador to the United Nations Security Council. @AmbPressman
"Yale’s board members will own — as individuals — whatever Yale does next,” writes former U.S. education secretary @arneduncan.bsky.social and former U.S. ambassador to Hungary @ambpressman.bsky.social.
Opinion | Yale’s trustees face a decision with profound consequences
A lesson from Hungary: Boards don't capitulate to authoritarians. The people on them do.
wapo.st
Orban personalized to intimidate the powerless; the foes of government intrusion must personalize to demand accountability from people with maximal power, resources and protection….So we address Yale’s trustees directly wapo.st/3RW4HPo
Opinion | Yale’s trustees face a decision with profound consequences
A lesson from Hungary: Boards don't capitulate to authoritarians. The people on them do.
wapo.st
"Magyar wasn't engaging in a policy debate... His framing was Viktor Orbán and Fidesz are a criminal organization and we need to dismantle this... he connected the impact of the criminal organization to these rural Hungarians' experience." @ambpressman.bsky.social on how Magyar beat Orbán.
@ambpressman.bsky.social: Under Viktor Orbán's authoritarian rule, the cost of a democratic vote was "extremely high"—reminiscent of developments we're now seeing under the Trump administration.
"Péter Magyar wasn’t calling out individual abuses. He was calling out an entire platform that was designed to enrich a kleptocratic elite and the family of Viktor Orbán." Important takeaways for us from @ambpressman.bsky.social:
Cali Dems Need to Get Their Sh*t Together
At this point, Gov. Tom Steyer might be the least bad outcome.
lnk.thebulwark.com
Hello from Budapest, where the right wing expats are feeling glum www.nytimes.com/2026/04/11/o...
Opinion | First There Was Viktor Orban. Then Donald Trump. Now Both Are Flailing.
nytimes.com
With Putin in his corner and Vance on his doorstep… whatever services Orbán is providing, he’s got two very satisfied customers in Moscow and Mar-a-Lago. wapo.st/4v10TeD
To tilt Hungarian election, Russians proposed staging assassination attempt
To aid Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a friend of Russia, in his election, operatives proposed “the Gamechanger” — a staged assassination attempt to stir supporters.
wapo.st
Instrumentalizing one of America’s more powerful foreign policy tools to punish critics and reward loyalists. Some thoughts on sanctions, corruption, and Hungary on Morning Edition:
NPR@npr.org · 5mo agoSpain's Prime Minister called U.S. strikes against Iran "unjustified." When other foreigners in power have used similar language against the U.S. or Israel, they were sanctioned by the Treasury. n.pr/4bpEyhx
At Annual @aceducation.bsky.social Meeting, a Call to Uphold Higher Ed’s Mission The former ambassador to Hungary raised a stark warning about the authoritarian similarities between President Trump and Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. https://bit.ly/46sKOUd #AcademicSky #HigherEd #EDUSky
"Appeasement is being coordinated while resistance is not" is exactly right. (This op-ed from Arne Duncan and David Pressman is excellent; I hope university leaders will read it.) www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Opinion | Universities are sending Trump a dangerous message
Higher education is under attack. Drop the appeasement.
washingtonpost.com
Accommodation does not moderate authoritarian regimes, it emboldens them. An important reminder that college and university leaders must fight to protect our democracy and intellectual freedom on college campuses. www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Opinion | Universities are sending Trump a dangerous message
Higher education is under attack. Drop the appeasement.
washingtonpost.com
Read @arneduncan.bsky.social @ambpressman.bsky.social "When institutional self-preservation replaces moral leadership, universities abandon their core mission. This is a striking abdication of responsibility..from leaders entrusted with educating the next generation of citizens." wapo.st/4qomlXe
Opinion | Universities are sending Trump a dangerous message
Higher education is under attack. Drop the appeasement.
wapo.st
"Silence is not neutrality; it is permission," @arneduncan.bsky.social and @ambpressman.bsky.social write. https://wapo.st/45YQ01X
Opinion | Universities are sending Trump a dangerous message
Higher education is under attack. Drop the appeasement.
wapo.st
“…appeasement is being coordinated while resistance is not.” Some thoughts on authoritarianism and higher education with Secretary @arneduncan.bsky.social in the Washington Post. wapo.st/4qomlXe
Opinion | Universities are sending Trump a dangerous message
Higher education is under attack. Drop the appeasement.
wapo.st
Looking forward to joining @global-affairs.bsky.social for this discussion on illiberalism.
Chicago Council on Global Affairs@global-affairs.bsky.social · 9mo agoHungary has become a test case for democratic backsliding. How did Viktor Orbán and his allies seize control of Hungary's free press and democratic institutions? Join @ambpressman.bsky.social and Suzanne Nossel on 12/11 as they examine Hungary's illiberal turn. brnw.ch/21wXqpi
Lawyers, universities, and execs think they’re satisfying the President’s ego by performing a little lie, by doing something in a “deal” they’d do anyway. But as in Hungary, these “deals” are the dead man’s walk of the one thing our democracy can’t live without: independence time.com/7332003/vikt...
Viktor Orbán and Donald Trump’s Attacks on Independence
Independence is "fundamental to the health of any democracy—and it has been systematically dismantled in Hungary."
time.com
Some thoughts in Time on the Orban/Trump meeting today. "Theirs is a war not so much on liberals or even just a war on independent institutions (central to any democracy), but on the very idea that anything is ever “independent.”' time.com/7332003/vikt...
Viktor Orbán and Donald Trump’s Attacks on Independence
Independence is "fundamental to the health of any democracy—and it has been systematically dismantled in Hungary."
time.com
Next week, Hungarians will honor those who sacrificed all to rid Hungary of an aggressive Russian empire in '56. Yes, POTUS visiting Hungary is a huge political favor to Orban. But rolling out the red carpet for a war criminal is ultimately a massive favor to Putin, again facilitated by Orban.
What we're reading: This chilling piece from a former U.S. ambassador to Hungary, David Pressman. "I came to understand that the real danger of a strongman isn’t his tactics; it’s how others, especially those with power, justify their acquiescence.” www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
“After years watching Hungary suffocate under the weight of its democratic collapse, I came to understand that the real danger of a strongman isn’t his tactics; it’s how others, especially those with power, justify their acquiescence.” (gift article) www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
Opinion | I Watched It Happen in Hungary. Now It’s Happening Here.
nytimes.com
David Pressman was a terrific and brave ambassador in Hungary, modeling the best of American values. His analysis is very worth reading! www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
Opinion | I Watched It Happen in Hungary. Now It’s Happening Here.
nytimes.com
Good read from Amb. David Pressman | I Watched It Happen in Hungary. Now It’s Happening Here. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
Opinion | I Watched It Happen in Hungary. Now It’s Happening Here.
nytimes.com
Urgent piece by @ambpressman.bsky.social about the dangers of capitulation to the administration - we know from Hungary what happens when “those best positioned to uphold democratic norms chose the comfort of an illusion over the courage of action”
David Pressman@ambpressman.bsky.social · last yr.Democracies collapse not just through force, but through the naïve self-confidence of elites. What should alarm us isn’t that strongmen follow similar playbooks, but that our elites do too. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
Democracies collapse not just through force, but through the naïve self-confidence of elites. What should alarm us isn’t that strongmen follow similar playbooks, but that our elites do too. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/23/o...
Opinion | I Watched It Happen in Hungary. Now It’s Happening Here.
The real danger of a strongman isn’t his tactics; it’s how others, especially those with power, justify their acquiescence.
nytimes.com
TRUMP IS INSPIRING AUTOCRATS AROUND THE WORD to roll back human rights, democratic rights and the rule of law. Some are giving him credit @anthonyfaiola.bsky.social reports www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...
Autocrats roll back rights and rule of law — and cite Trump’s example
Trump’s statements, policies and actions are providing cover for attacks on LGBTQ+ rights, freedom of expression and the rule of law around the world.
washingtonpost.com
Autocrats roll back rights and rule of law — and cite Trump’s example Orban noted Biden’s ambassador to 🇭🇺 David Pressman, a fierce Orban critic directly challenged the democratic backsliding — and made a point of participating in Budapest Pride, an event w/ 35K people to 🇭🇺 capital, to protect it.
“Orban himself noted that the Biden administration’s ambassador to Hungary made a point of participating in Budapest Pride, an event that has brought 35,000 people to the Hungarian capital, to protect it.” www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...
Autocrats roll back rights and rule of law — and cite Trump’s example
Trump’s statements, policies and actions are providing cover for attacks on LGBTQ+ rights, freedom of expression and the rule of law around the world.
washingtonpost.com
