Sebastian Gorka

Sebastian Lukács Gorka (born 22 October 1970, Sebestyén Lucas Gorka) is a British-Hungarian Islamophobe, a Steve Bannon protégé, possible Nazi sympathiser,[2] wannabe-editor of Goatee Aficionado Magazine and an all-around complete asshole. Naturally, all these attributes qualified him for a spot in the Donald Trump administration, and he advised the Trump White House from the inauguration until late August 2017, after which point he became a Fox News pundit, because of course he did. He conveniently uses the Islamist terrorism issue as a vehicle to channel his malicious contempt for all things Arab-related and Islam-related, although he has never been to the Middle East and does not speak a word of Arabic.[3]

“”They wanna take away your hamburgers! This is what Stalin dreamt about but never achieved.
—Seb Gorka on AOC's Green New Deal evil, anti-American, communist agenda[1]
Frogs, clowns and swastikas
Alt-right
Chuds
Rebuilding the Reich, one meme at a time
Buzzwords and dogwhistles
v - t - e

He has a doctorate in applied political science from Corvinus University in Hungary.[4] Gorka likes to trot out his credentials and insist that people call him "Dr.", but his Ph.D. advisor, Stephen Sloan, stated, "I would not call him an expert in terrorism." and that "his level of expertise does not match the level where he stands in the White House."[5] Several other academics have also criticized the both the poor quality of Gorka's doctorate and Gorka's lack of expertise.[6][5][7]

Gorka is a noted gun nut.[8][9] In February 2016, Gorka attempted to bring a 9mm pistol on board an airplane at Reagan National Airport; for this, he was charged for a misdemeanor.[10] The charge was dismissed by a judge in February 2017 because Gorka "stayed out of trouble" for 6 months.[11] In January 2018, it was reported that there was a Hungarian police arrest warrant that was issued for Gorka on September 17, 2016 and was in effect through January 2018; the warrant was for "firearm or ammunition abuse", which may have occurred in 2009.[8][12][13] By February 2018, the arrest warrant was removed without explanation.[14]

Gorka is a member of Vitézi Rend, a reconstituted Hungarian Nazi organization that retains its nationalist and racist principles.[2][15] Several US Congressional representatives have questioned whether Gorka illegally received US citizenship, based on his membership in a proscribed Nazi organization, Vitézi Rend.[16][17]

Gorka left the White House in August 2017 and (of course) became a contributor for Fox News. In March 2019 he departed Fox News to (of course) become a syndicated talk radio show host on Sinclair Broadcasting[18]. Gorka's American-born wife, Katharine Gorka, remains in the Trump administration as an adviser to the secretary of homeland security. According to Eric Rosand, a former senior State Department official responsible for programs on Countering Violent Extremism, Katharine Gorka "played a significant role in denying CVE grant funding to groups that work to de-radicalize neo-Nazis and other far right extremists and Muslim-American groups that work to build resilience against violent extremism, but without the involvement of the police."[19]

In November 2019, Gorka's Youtube channel was taken down after continuing to use Imagine Dragons' "Radioactive" as his theme music, despite the protests of the band.[20]

Siding with the coup attempt

During the 2021 U.S. Capitol riot, Gorka's Twitter timeline essentially showed him cheering on the rioters (chronologically):[21]

  1. "American Patriots have had enough. They have taken Capitol Hill. #StopTheSteal" (11:43)[22]
  2. …Pence punts. Violence on #CapitolHill …" (11:48)[23]
  3. "BREAKING: #SaveAmericaRally protesters have stormed the #Capitol" (11:51)[24]
  4. "We are Myriad." (11:56)[25]

Gorka's timeline also puts the lie to the Antifa-did-it conspiracy theory raised by others.

gollark: I would... kind of agree with that, actually, since it just says "right to bear arms".
gollark: Oh right, constitutions of some sort, makes sense.
gollark: I'm not sure how or... why... a government would make it illegal for itself to pass some types of law.
gollark: I love how it just says "related to" instead of "against" or something.
gollark: I think that's been known since Malcom Turnbull, as prime minister, claimed Australian laws were more important than mathematical ones.

References
  1. The latest right-wing attack on Democrats: ‘They want to take away your hamburgers’ The Washington Post.
  2. Nazi-Allied Group Claims Top Trump Aide Sebastian Gorka As Sworn Member by Lili Bayer & Larry Cohler-Esses (March 16, 2017) Forward.
  3. Sebastian Gorka May Be a Far-Right Nativist, but for Sure He’s a Terrible Scholar
  4. Content and End-State-based Alteration in the Practice of Political Violence since the End of the Cold War: The difference between the terrorism of the Cold War and the terrorism of al Qaeda: the rise of the "transcendental terrorist" by Sebestyén L. v. Gorka (2007) Corvinus University.
  5. Sebastian Gorka's PhD adviser: "I would not call him an expert in terrorism" by Curt Devine et al. (Updated 9:18 PM ET, Fri August 18, 2017) CNN.
  6. Stop Calling Him 'Dr.': The Academic Fraud of Sebastian Gorka, Trump's Terrorism 'Expert': The only formally qualified examiner for Gorka’s Ph.D. on a panel packed with personal friends was an extreme right-wing Hungarian MEP who recently advocated putting pigs heads on a fence on the Hungarian border to keep out Muslims by Andrew Reynolds (Apr 27, 2017 12:34 PM) Haaretz.
  7. Exclusive: Listen to Controversial White House Terrorism Adviser Sebastian Gorka’s Angry Call to a Critic by Jeff Stein (2/23/17 at 5:16 AM) Newsweek.
  8. Sebastian Gorka was a wanted man the entire time he worked in White House, report says by Carter Sherman (Jan 18, 2018) Vice News.
  9. Zeroed In: Sebastian Gorka. Former Presidential Advisor Sebastian Gorka Talks Politics, the Media, and 7.62×39 by Rob Curtis (2017) Recoil Issue 34.
  10. Trump aide was among record numbers taking a gun through TSA checkpoint last year, police say by Fredrick Kunkle (January 27, 2017) The Washington Post.
  11. Judge dismisses weapons charge against White House aide by Josh Gerstein (02/03/2017 10:12 AM EST) Politico.
  12. Hungarian Police Have A Warrant Out For Former Trump Adviser Sebastian Gorka: Gorka's warrant on gun charges was in effect the entire time he was in the White House. by Hayes Brown ( Originally posted on January 18, 2018, at 7:49 a.m.; Updated on January 18, 2018, at 9:31 a.m.) BuzzFeed News.
  13. Szijjártó úgy találkozott Gorka Sebestyénnel Washingtonban, hogy a férfit itthon elfogatóparancs alapján körözik by Herczeg Márk (January 18, 2018) 444 (Hungary).
  14. Sebastian Gorka no longer listed as wanted by Hungarian police by Rick Noack (February 12, 2018) The Washington Post.
  15. Sebastian Gorka Made Nazi-Linked Vitezi Rend 'Proud' by Wearing Its Medal by Alexander Smith and Vladimir Banic (Apr 8 2017, 9:40 am ET) NBC News.
  16. Democratic senators call for investigation into Trump aide Sebastian Gorka by Jessica Estepa (Published 5:09 p.m. ET March 17, 2017 | Updated 5:15 p.m. ET March 17, 2017) USA Today.
  17. Dem rep asks White House for Sebastian Gorka's immigration papers by Max Greenwood (03/16/17 07:19 PM EDT) The Hill.
  18. https://thehill.com/homenews/media/432450-gorka-fox-part-ways
  19. The Gorka That Matters Isn’t Leaving The Trump Administration: Sebastian Gorka is out at the White House, but his wife, Katharine, remains a force in government, wielding more power than her husband ever did. by John Hudson (August 29, 2017, at 12:41 p.m.) BuzzFeed News.
  21. Sebastian Gorka Twitter (archived from January 6, 2021).
  22. American Patriots have had enough. They have taken Capitol Hill. #StopTheSteal by Sebastian Gorka (11:43 - 6 Jan. 2021) Twitter (archived from January 7, 2021).
  23. President @realDonaldTrump addresses huge #SaveAmerica rally. @VP Pence punts. Violence on #CapitolHill Today's special guests: Joe DiGenova, @VicToensing, @realMikeLindell, and @JenniferHorn by Sebastian Gorka (11:48 - 6. Jan. 2021) Twitter (archived from January 6, 2021).
  24. BREAKING: #SaveAmericaRally protesters have stormed the #Capitol. by Sebastian Gorka (11:51 - 6. Jan. 2021) Twitter (archived from January 6, 2021).
  25. We are Myriad. by Sebastian Gorka (11:56 - 6. Jan. 2021) Twitter (archived from January 6, 2021).
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