The disgraced U.S. ambassador’s deliberate interference in Hungary’s internal affairs and political processes—as well as the motivations behind them—have long been linked to George Soros and his network, as previously revealed by the investigative Tuzfalcsoport (Firewall Brigade). As the group’s report states, between 2016 and 2020, David Pressman served as executive director of the Clooney Foundation for Justice, an organization founded by Hollywood actor George Clooney and his wife, both close confidants of the American speculator and vocal critics of Hungary. Among its stated objectives, the NGO aims to "combat injustices against LGBTQ+ individuals and minorities," an effort that has received more than half a million dollars in funding from Soros since 2021.
However, the disgraced ambassador was also an employee of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) in Chicago, where he handled "litigation, public speaking, education, and advocacy." ACLU is essentially the American equivalent of Hungary’s TASZ. According to its website, the NGO considers itself "the guardian of liberty" in the United States, working through the courts, legislatures, and communities to "protect and preserve individual rights and freedoms." The ACLU claims to champion causes such as "achieving full equality for LGBTQ individuals" and "defending abortion rights," taking on the "toughest civil liberties issues" to "protect all people from government overreach and abuses."
The Open Society Foundations is continuously funding ACLU, providing the organization with $15 million in grants in 2022 alone (more than 5.6 billion forints at the exchange rate at the time).
Before being appointed U.S. Ambassador to Hungary, Pressman was also a partner at Jenner & Block in New York, where he co-chaired the firm’s human rights division. His pre-appointment ethics disclosure revealed that in 2021, he received more than $1.73 million (exceeding 600 million forints) in compensation from the international law firm.
And now, the disgraced ambassador returns to his former employer.
The latest announcement on the matter—citing only the liberal media—portrays George Soros's ally as a "brilliant orator" (Le Monde), "one of the world’s leading human rights advocates" (CNN), and a "high-ranking diplomat" (The Guardian).