Trump Congratulates Brazil's New Far Right President Jair Bolsonaro

[DonViejo]

Source: Mediaite



by Aidan McLaughlin | Jan 1st, 2019, 1:32 pm

President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Tuesday to offer congratulations to Jair Bolsonaro, the far-right former army captain just sworn in as Brazil’s new president.

“Congratulations to President @JairBolsonaro who just made a great inauguration speech – the U.S.A. is with you!” Trump wrote.

Link to tweet

Bolsanaro — often described as the “Trump of the tropics” — gave his inauguration speech in the capital Brasilia, and vowed to crack down on corruption and crime.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attended the inauguration, per the BBC, along with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and far right Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

###

Read more: https://www.mediaite.com/trump/trump-congratulates-brazils-new-far-right-president-jair-bolsonaro/

[musette_sf]

1. "vowed to crack down"

on any corruption and crime that he does not personally profit from

[progree]

2. Bolsonaro on Afro-Brazilians and gays

Bolsonaro, Brazil's new president, described Afro-Brazilians as not even good for procreation. And that he would be incapable of loving a homosexual son. And his (straight) sons were at no risk of falling in love with black women because his sons are very well educated. -- The Nation 12/3/18

[Polybius]

12. How the hell did he win in Brazil?

He has said things that even Trump wouldn't say (yet).

[progree]

13. How did he win? I have no idea

I'm definitely no expert on Bolsonaro ... I was just struck by that blurb from The Nation when I read it.

And I've seen stories where he's all for loggers and farmers doing whatever the heck they want to do to the Amazon (and to heck with the trees, wildlife, and indigenous people).

Him and the Philippine's Duterte and our Trump....

[Blue_Tires]

15. Part of it is the left has been mired in one

corruption scandal after another.

The other part is Brazil's economy has gone down the toilet which always makes "Only I Can Save You" bully pulpit strongmen VERY attractive to "Anything is better than the status quo" voters

[Magoo48]

3. Racist, Fascist leaders are a fucking circle-jerk.

[MosheFeingold]

20. I don't think you know what "fascist" means

This guy and Trump are assholes, yes. Certainly racist, too.

But they are weakening and decentralizing the central government.

That is the opposite of fascism, which is all about the centralization of power into a small group in the government.

Fascism can exist without racism (Italy, early on, more or less) and can even be left wing. Or even be a monarchy (e.g., Japan).

It's a small point, but I don't like people using words like "fascist" or "Nazi" wrongly. It weakens the words.

I had my hair cut today by a young Hispanic lady, age 19. She was somewhat confused by my hair and my sidelocks. She did not know what a Jewish person was, nor (when I explained it) what a Nazi was. Had never heard of the Shoah or what Hitler did to my people (and my family). We need to be extremely careful with words so people do not forget.

[Magoo48]

21. I do know the definitions of fascism/fascist.

Chalk it up to lazy language application on the fly.🧐✌🏽

[enid602]

26. Fascistas

Bolsonaro is talking about sending drones into the favellas to kill ‘criminals,’ on sight. He chuckles and says he doesn’t consider his government a military junta, but rather a ‘military style’ government. He’s the real thing. Pray for your brothers and sisters in Brazil. The two previous progressive Presidents have been incarcerated. The last Progressive President, Dilma Roussef has been freed. She spent much of her early adulthood in military prisons during the dictadura.

[KPN]

4. The world will not be safe for most until these

and a few other “leaders” (e.g., Putin) are removed from power or eradicated if it comes to that.

[appalachiablue]

5. 'Tropical Trump, Brazil moves far right for people, the economy, environment.

Declaring 'liberation from socialism,' Bolsonaro inaugural with wife Michele.

"Brazil's New President Bolsonaro Vows To 'Strengthen Democracy,'" Reuters, Jan. 1, 2019. While investors see Bolsonaro reinvigorating Latin America's largest economy, environmentalists and rights groups are worried he will roll back protections for the Amazon rainforest and loosen gun controls in a country that already has the world's highest number of murders. Bolsonaro plans to realign Brazil internationally, moving away from developing nation allies and closer to the policies of Western leaders, particularly U.S. President Donald Trump, who sent Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to his inauguration.
CONSERVATIVE AGENDA. Backed massively by conservative sectors of Brazil, incl. Christian evangelical churches, Bolsonaro would block moves to legalize abortion beyond even the current limited exceptions & remove sex education from public schools, opposing what he calls "cultural Marxism" introduced by recent leftist govts. Bolsonaro has faced charges of inciting rape and for hate crimes because of comments about women, gays & racial minorities. Yet his law-&-order rhetoric and plans to ease gun controls have resonated with many voters, esp. in Brazil's booming farm country. http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/brazils-new-president-bolsonaro-vows-to-strengthen-democracy/ar-BBRFpq9?ocid=HPCOMMDHP15

"Bolsonaro declares Brazil's 'liberation from socialism' sworn in," Far-right populist invited lawmakers to help country free itself from ‘ideological submission’ in speech, The Guardian, Jan. 1, Jair Bolsonaro’s inauguration: the day progressive Brazil has dreaded. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/jan/01/jair-bolsonaro-inauguration-brazil-president

WIKI, Bolsonaro joined the reserve army in 1988 and ran for the Rio de Janeiro City Council that year, being elected as a member of the Christian Democratic Party. He was elected in 1990 to the lower chamber of Congress and was subsequently re-elected 6 times. During his 27-year tenure as a congressman, he became known for his strong support of national conservatism. Bolsonaro is a vocal opponent of same-sex marriage & homosexuality, abortion, affirmative action, drug liberalization & secularism. In foreign policy, he has advocated closer relations to the U.S. & Israel. In the 2018 campaign, he started to advocate for economic liberal & pro-market policies. Bolsonaro is a polarizing & controversial politician; his views & comments, far-right & conservative in nature, have drawn both praise & criticism in Brazil. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jair_Bolsonaro

[Judi Lynn]

8. The reason more hasn't been known about the dictatorship Bolsonaro publicly supports

is that the right-wing was able to create a protective layer of immunity around those involved in the horrendous cruelty against people they didn't like politially.

Very helpful information available in your Wikipedia link:

Throughout his political career, Bolsonaro has made a number of admiring comments about the U.S.-supported[106] Brazilian military dictatorship which ruled the country from 1964 to 1985. He said in 1993, eight years after the return of democracy, that the military regime had "led to a more sustainable and prosperous Brazil".[11] Bolsonaro has publicly referred to the military dictatorship as a "glorious" period in Brazil's history,[107] and that under the military dictatorship, Brazil enjoyed "20 years of order and progress".[107] In December 2008, Bolsonaro said that "the error of the dictatorship was that it tortured, but did not kill".[108]

Bolsonaro has also repeatedly made admiring comments about a number of other Latin American dictatorships. He praised Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori as a role model for his use of military intervention via self-coup against the judiciary and legislature.[11] In a 1998 interview with Veja magazine, Bolsonaro praised the Chilean dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, and said the Pinochet regime, which killed over 3,000 Chilean citizens, "should have killed more people".[109]

A demonstration against Bolsonaro in Porto Alegre, September 2018
Speaking before his vote in favor of President Dilma Rousseff's impeachment amid the massive corruption scandal, Bolsonaro paid homage to Colonel Brilhante Ustra, an agent of Brazil's military dictatorship, and announced on the floor of the Chamber of Deputies that he was dedicating his pro-impeachment vote to Ustra's memory. Ustra had headed the DOI-CODI torture unit where Rousseff was allegedly tortured during the military dictatorship. Left-wing deputy Jean Wyllys spat at him after his own statement during the same session. The congressman claimed to have suffered homophobic offenses from Jair Bolsonaro and his allies.[110][111]

In a TV interview with Câmera Aberta in the 1990s, Bolsonaro said that if he ever became President, he would use this as an opportunity to shut down the National Congress and instigate a military coup himself. As of 2018, he has changed his mind, and said that if someone becomes the head of the country, it would be through voting.[112]

~ ~ ~

From another Wikipedia link, regarding information made public much later:

The National Truth Commission (Portuguese: Comissão Nacional da Verdade) was approved by the Chamber of Deputies of Brazil on 21 September 2011.[1] Originally planned to investigate human rights violations during the military dictatorship of 1964–1985, it investigated violations from the period of 1946–1988.[1] The bill, which originated from the Executive branch, was approved in late 2011 by the Federal Senate and sanctioned by President Dilma Rousseff.[2][3] The commission lasted for two years and consist of seven members appointed by Rousseff.[1] Members of the commission had access to all government files about the 1946–1988 period and may convene victims or people accused of violations for testimony, although it wasn't mandatory for them to attend.[4]

On 10 December 2014, the commission issued a report with its findings.[5][6] The report identified the participation of 337 agents of Brazilian government involved in human rights violations, including arbitrary prisons, forced disappearings, torture and subsequent death of political opponents to the dictatorship.[5] According to the report, 434 people were killed or disappeared by actions of the military regime.[7] During the same period over 8.300 Indians were killed, and the Truth Commission admits that the real figure of Indians killed is probably much higher.[8]

. . .

This book outlined the results of eleven years of labor by the CEMDP, serving as the first official report by the Brazilian State to directly accuse members of the military for crimes such as torture, dismemberment, decapitation, rape, concealing bodies, and murder. Paulo Vannuchi, one of the authors of Brazil: Nunca Mais, helped to complete this book. This book proved that the majority of opponents to the military regime were arrested, tortured, and killed, and was highly critical of the amnesty awarded to military officials. This book called military officials and those involved in illicit acts to uncover the truth of what happened during the regime.[1]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Truth_Commission

Thank you, appalachiablue. Hope more U.S. Americans will realize how much they've not been able to know about the
Americas, due to deliberate misinformation, and absence of information altogether, considering the U.S. has only supported hard-right politicians and administrations at all points south of the U.S. border.

[appalachiablue]

14. With Bolsonaro's rise I've learned more about the previous 'glorious

military dictatorship' he longs for so much. An awful state suppression and an anti democratic regime that I wasn't really aware of at the time. He's so regressive and starting out strong with major changes to the environment, the economy, and indigenous and minority rights. There are still progressive movements there so we'll see how it goes, soon enough.

[oberliner]

6. He tweeted back

Link to tweet

[NastyRiffraff]

7. Backed by...Christian evangelical churches

Why do the evangelicals always, consistently, back authoritarian "leaders," even murderers? Probably because they themselves are authoritarian: believe, or else.

Reason #1,483 that I'm an atheist.

[LiberalLovinLug]

9. Congratulations Brazil, you have your very own Trump

Just when the US is on the verge of finally dumping theirs.

[Blue_Tires]

16. On one hand I weep for the people of Brazil

but on the other I'm absolutely giddy that Glenn Fuckin' Greenwald, who did everything in his power to get Trump elected while smugly lecturing so-called "establishment" liberals from his $10 million ivory tower mansion now gets fascism knocking on his front door...

He thought he was so safe in his leftist paradise, too. Now when the roundups come his name will probably be at the top of the list.

[LiberalLovinLug]

17. But that doesn't make sense

If this "leftist" was actually working to help elect Trump, why would you think he'd be in any danger? Bolsonaro and Trump are pals. In fact he'd most likely be invited to the inauguration ball.

You have to think through your conspiracy theories a little more. I've already come up with a better one for you: Greenwald choose Brazil because he, after a successful operation in the US, moved on to help Bolsonaro. And why not be close at hand so he can do his bidding whenever he needs something?

[Blue_Tires]

18. First of all

that pseudo leftist *DID* work to get Trump elected and since then he's not only done everything in his power to piss all over Mueller and Dems who have been fighting Trump, he was in absolute 100% denial about KremlinGate for damn near two years. The self-appointed Jesus Christ of investigative journalism with an unlimited budget and with the biggest potential political scandal of our lifetimes he's counting how many times Rachel Maddow says "Russia"...

Secondly, Quislings are always expendable and in case you missed it, Bolsonaro really, really, really hates GLBT folks and he has also gone on record defending/whitewashing the horrors of the old Military Junta... Not difficult to put 2+2 together here.

But hey, don't believe me... Please continue to make your jokes. I know that deep down it must really burn you up to admit you've been defending a fraud and I've been right about Greenwald all this time...

[LiberalLovinLug]

19. I don't think much about Greenwald

I definitely don't think I'm in a contest with you about him. My opinion has not changed. We need more journalists that are not afraid to take on the status quo, and those who want to abuse power. So I'll always cheer on journalists like GG. I find a bit boring articles that just tell me things I am already convinced of, although I enjoy that experience.

Real journalists do not take sides as you would prefer. As Fox News does. He is free, if you believe in freedom of the press, to write about and expose wrongs even within the leadership structure of Democratic party, and in the MSM. He doesn't write as a member of DU. He doesn't have those kinds of restrictions. If you are happy in only one bubble telling you what you want to hear, fine, its your life. I welcome disparaging opinion, and the fact that we live in a free enough society to have those articles available.

I do not agree with everything Greenwald says. Like I said, I am not even keeping up with him much. I think Putin and Russia had a big influence, especially considering Trumps business adventures intertwine so much with Russia. But I appreciate having someone dig a little deeper, and even suggest that making Putin the only scapegoat seems quite convenient. That the GOP didn't have their own home grown troll army working overtime too, and why wouldn't that army be even more influential? And why not delve into how even it became possible for a Trump, and how perhaps consolidation of power by Washington politicians, in general (both D and R), has also contributed to the ease of a Trump ever rising? The same in the MSM. How is this topic not important?

As far as his observations on the Democratic party....why do we have to be so shy to look for faults in areas we could improve upon? That the Democratic party has been fine, under Obama, to expand executive power for instance. A good article I found in the New Yorker on Greenwald, which is not a fluff piece on him. But this is a quote:

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/09/03/glenn-greenwald-the-bane-of-their-resistance

Years after he began writing critically about expanded Presidential powers, “all these powers are now in the hands of Donald Trump,” he said. “He gets to start wars. So I do get a sense that, O.K., people are going to finally understand that this model of the American Presidency—this omnipotence, this lack of checks and balances—is so dangerous. But the problem is they’re being told that the danger is endemic to Trump, and not to this broader systemic abuse that’s been created. And that’s why I’m so opposed to the attempt to depict Trump as the singular evil. It’s not just partial or incomplete—it’s counterproductive, it’s deceitful.”


IMO, we need voices that push the next narrative, or the one behind the obvious narrative. The world needs Greenwald and other free radical journalists that don't have marching orders from either side. Opening up questions even on institutions that we don't want exposed is something to value, not disparage. GG is not a Democrat. But he's also not a Republican. He's a bit of shit disturber. But I think this world is big enough for a few of those.

[Blue_Tires]

22. Isn't it odd that a supposedly Jewish leftist

has found such an agreeable audience among the nazi-lite crowd?

[LiberalLovinLug]

24. You are pivoting to the French protests?

Okay. Although I don't know how that tweet says much. It is more just stating a fact.

If you mean others where he brings up that the protests kept on, and that was because it was more about the working classes having to deal with the costs of climate change and letting the elites off the hook....Uh, yes, I appreciate other vantage points on a story.

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2018/12/09/more-thousand-arrested-yellow-vests-protests-over-economic-frustration-rage-across

Reflecting another voice, Naomi Klein :

To understand the urgency of #GreenNewDeal, look to France. Neoliberal climate action passes on the costs to working people, offers them no better jobs or services + lets big polluters off the hook. People see it as a class war, because it is.


I appreciate that incidents are not easily put into two boxes. Black, white. Or good, bad. That sometimes there are multiple shades of reasons, and that politicians both on the left and the right find it easier to lay all the blame on one easy target. If we didn't have journalists that explore other tangents then we might as well just write the news ourselves to fit our own opinions.

[Blue_Tires]

25. More Glenn.... So fearless and adversarial:

And you didn't find it weird that the leader of PrisonPlanet is re-tweeting a supposedly legit liberal journalist?

A shame you were absent when I was posting all my "Daily Greenwald" threads which beautifully illustrate Glennbo's journalistic bona fides... Luckily you can still find them in the archives!

As an aside, I'm thinking you haven't gotten the memo that the "Glenn Greenwald is a legit, fair, high-minded investigative journalist" ship sailed a couple of years back which makes your continued defense of an empty fortress puzzling. It's so obvious and the pile of evidence is so high now that all I have to do these days is let my history of posts and the hypocrisy of Glenn's twitter feed do all my arguments for me...

[Judi Lynn]

10. To celebrate the inauguration of Jair Bolsonaro, the "Trump of Brazil",

a reminder of the racist monsters who chose to leave the US than to give up their power to steal the lives of human beings and repay them with constant suffering until their dying breaths:

JUL 25, 2018
The Confederacy Made Its Last Stand in Brazil
JESSE GREENSPAN



After the Civil War, more than 10,000 Southerners left the U.S. rather than submit to Yankee rule.

By the time the Civil War ended in 1865, much of the South lay in ruins, physically, economically and socially. Fears of Yankee reprisals and racial conflict percolated through society. Black slaves had been freed; Confederate President Jefferson Davis was imprisoned. For William H. Norris, a former Alabama state senator and staunch Confederate, it was all too much to bear.

Rather than rejoin the United States, he and a son traveled to southeastern Brazil in late 1865 and purchased about 500 acres of rolling hills and reddish soil that reminded them of Alabama. They then bought three slaves, planted cotton, sent for the rest of the family and proceeded to live as if the Confederacy hadn’t just collapsed.

The Norris family was not alone in their desire to avoid Yankee rule. In the decade after the Civil War, roughly 10,000 Southerners left the United States, with the majority going to Brazil, where slavery was still legal. (Others went to such places as Cuba, Mexico, Venezuela, Honduras, Canada and Egypt.) Though hardships prompted most to come right back, descendants of these so-called Confederados maintain a presence in Brazil even today.

Amid the post-Civil War chaos, several countries tried to entice Southerners, largely for political and agricultural reasons. In Mexico, for example, Emperor Maximilian I (soon to be executed before a firing squad) awarded land and tax breaks and hired Confederate oceanographer Matthew Fontaine Maury to be his “imperial commissioner of immigration.” In Venezuela, the authorities also provided land and tax breaks. And in Egypt, an Ottoman viceroy brought over ex-Confederate and ex-Union officers to help invade Ethiopia.

More:
https://www.history.com/news/confederacy-in-brazil-civil-war













Tiny a-holes

[moondust]

11. +1

~
During the Atlantic slave trade era, Brazil imported more African slaves than any other country.
~
Brazil was the last country in the Western world to abolish slavery.
~
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_Brazil

Today I heard that in 2018 there were 63,000 murders in Brazil. And Bolsy promises to make it easier to buy guns. Brilliant!

[EX500rider]

23. "Tiny a-holes"

I really doubt the children have any idea about what their costume stands for, the parents dressed them.

[NickB79]

27. How did they maintain racial purity for 150 years?

Either they're inbred as fuck, or they didn't honor their ancestor's racist beliefs faithfully.