The presence in Florida of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, whose followers invaded the main seats of power in Brasilia on Sunday, appears uncomfortable for the United States led by Joe Biden, whose promise is to defend democracy in the world.
For decades, Florida has served as home in exile for Latin American right-wing leaders and recently in state of adoption of former President Donald Trump, a reference for Bolsonaro and who, like him, questions the results of the elections in his country.
Two years after Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, Bolsonaro supporters also stormed the Presidential Palace in Brasilia, Congress and the Supreme Court, and even he unsuccessfully called for military intervention remove President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva from power.
Biden and “unwavering” support for Brazilian democracy
In response, Biden offered his “unwavering” support for Brazilian democracy during a phone call and invited Lula to the White House. However, some left-wing congressmen in the US and Brazil are calling for him to go further and expel Bolsonaro.
“Terrorists and domestic fascists cannot be allowed to use the Trump script to undermine democracy. Bolsonaro should not be given refuge in Floridawhere he hides so as not to answer for his crimes,” US Congressman Joaquin Castro wrote on Twitter.
Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, said the US “has not received an official request” from the Brazilian government about former President Bolsonaro, but that if it did, it would take it “seriously”.
“Discomfort is normal, in a way,” said Valentina Sader, associate director of the Atlantic Council’s Center for Latin America. “What happened in Brazil got the United States involved in the conversation because President Bolsonaro was here.”
But the Bolsonaro’s absence could also spell an opportunity for Lulawho instead of focusing on his predecessor may benefit from unity among Brazilians in condemning the attacks, Sader said.
After defeating Trump, Biden vowed to defend democracy around the world. Brasilia’s power grab could make Lula a bigger ally by sharing the lessons learned, he added.
Unlike the articulate Trump, Bolsonaro has kept a low profile in Florida, where he has been seen dining alone at a Kentucky Fried Chicken. He is located near Disney World in Orlando, home of former Brazilian martial arts champion José Aldo.
Bolsonaro condemned the “looting” on Twitter of public buildings. In an interview with CNN Brazil, he said he plans to return to the South American country in late January, but may bring the trip forward for health reasons, after being treated since Sunday and released from an Orlando hospital on Tuesday with injuries. related to a knife attack she suffered in 2018.
While he has no plans to go into self-exile, Bolsonaro – often called the “Tropical Trump” – has I found followers in Floridahome to nearly a quarter of Brazilians in the United States, which he has visited in 2020 and 2022 as president.
Other famous leaders who fled to Florida included Gerardo Machado, nicknamed the “tropical Mussolini” when he led Cuba nearly a century ago, or Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza, who traveled to Miami after being ousted but denied asylum by administration. .
It is not known whether Bolsonaro has met Trump since he traveled to Florida, but his son, Eduardo, maintains a close relationship with American political strategist, Steve Bannon.
Bannon urged him investigate the electronic voting system from Brazil, which has historically been praised worldwide for its effectiveness.
Convicted of refusing to testify before a congressional committee investigating the storming of the Capitol, Bannon promoted his conception of nationalism abroad. In addition to Bolsonaro, the strategist has defended leaders such as Hungary’s Viktor Orban, India’s Narendra Modi and far-right parties.
Thomas Carothers, a democracy expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, says Trump helped bring about the electoral denial is an international force.
He said Brazil was particularly susceptible, due to its strong parallels with the United States. Beyond the Trump-Bolsonaro alliance, Brazil has seen increase the role of religion in politics and a clear gap between cities and rural areas.
But he added that there are other countries that need to be careful, including Mexico, where the president is trying to reform the electoral system; and Turkey, where President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will contest elections this year, four years after his party forced a rerun of the Istanbul mayoral vote.
Election denial “not really a new idea”Carothers noted.
“It’s just that Trump pushed it as a strategy and showed the world that even in the United States, elections can be questioned.”
The author is an AFP journalist
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Source: Clarin
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.