Orbán called “goulash with ears” on German TV – PM criticised for EU budget veto

German heute SHOW ridicules Hungary and Poland’s veto on EU budget, calls Prime Minister Viktor Orbán a “Gulasch mit Ohren” (basically calling him a jerk) and dreams about a European Union (EU) without the two “gangster” countries.

Heute SHOW is a German late-night satirical television program presented by German comedian and journalist Oliver Welke. It airs on public broadcasting channel ZDF. The show presents the weekly news with sarcastic and cynical comments, focusing on issues that are subject to the latest political discussion in Germany. Welke argues that he might help to point out “what goes the wrong way” in politics, and sometimes, he simply mocks “people who deserve it.” Last week, it was Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán who deserved it.

The show’s latest episode aired on 20 November, and it had a full segment focusing on Hungary and Poland vetoing the EU’s 1.8 billion Euro-budget and post-pandemic recovery package, Telex reports. In the segment, Welke talks with an actress pretending to be an on-sight reporter from Brussels.

The topic is Hungary and Poland vetoing the EU’s budget because it would tie EU funding to the rule of law regulations. Orbán has said that connecting the EU’s budget and the recovery package to conditions where “the nature of the alleged law violation is not precisely defined” puts the trust between member states, as well as the interests of Hungary, at risk.

The fake reporter screams how “unbelievable” Hungary’s actions are, then calls Prime Minister Viktor Orbán a “Goulash mit Ohren” which literally translates to goulash with ears. However, the real meaning of the phrase has nothing to do with gastronomy. The German saying “Arsch mit Ohren” [literally an ass with ears] is often used to call someone an idiot, or an ass. Basically, she calls Orbán a jerk and goes on to say that by vetoing the rule of law clause in the EU budget, Orbán admits that Hungary is not led by the rule of law.

The reporter also says that Orbán, “together with his gangster colleague Mateusz Morawiecki are using the coronavirus epidemic to blackmail the entire European Union.”

The fake reporter and Welke also criticise the EU’s inaction regarding the matter and joke about their only response being a “stupid grimace,” and politely asking the extorters to stop their blackmail, to which Hungary and Poland say “nah, we don’t feel like it.”   

The fake reporter says that Budapest and Warsaw’s actions simply “make her sick.”

She also points out that while the Hungarian government suffocates critical media, the Polish government abolished independent courts and the right to abortion, all of this in the middle of the EU.

The fake reporter comes to a simple solution: all members of the EU except for Hungary and Poland should quit the union. Therefore, the EU would cease to exist; then members could immediately form new one without Hungary and Poland, which they could call EUODBUUP, which roughly translates to “The European Union Without the Stupid Hungarians and Poles”.

She also points out how this way, the EU could save 17 billion Euros annually.

The segment ends with the reporter cutting two stars out of the EU flag, representing Hungary and Poland.