Whereas Hungary has had a long-standing historic relationship with the United States, with bilateral relations established in 1921 and the first United States Ambassador to Hungary, Theodore Brentano, appointed on February 10, 1922; Whereas the United States honored the efforts and sacrifices of democratic protestors in Hungary in 1956 who will always be cherished for valiantly and courageously standing up to Soviet tanks; Whereas the United States in 1978 reached a bilateral trade agreement with Hungary, including the extension of most-favored-nation status to Hungary; Whereas in the following years, the United States offered Hungary extensive assistance and expertise to help establish a constitution, a democratic political system, and a plan for a transitional free market economy; Whereas between 1989 and 1993, the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989 ( Public Law 101–179 ) provided more than $136,000,000 for economic restructuring and private-sector development in Hungary; Whereas Hungary acceded to the North Atlantic Trade Organization (NATO) in April 1999, and became a formal treaty ally of the United States; Whereas the United States supported Hungary in its accession to the European Union (EU) in 2004; Whereas the United States is proud to count as many as 1,500,000 Hungarian-Americans as strong contributors to the economic vibrancy of the United States, as well as to the social, cultural, and political fabric of our country; Whereas Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his ruling party Fidesz , has increasingly moved towards authoritarianism in word and action, declaring in 2014 that he preferred an illiberal state and illiberal democracy citing Russia as his model