There were few representatives from the right and center-right who warned about the seriousness of the evidence revealed by the party that indicated that he tried to keep the former president (PL) in office after his defeat in 2022.
The revelation that a group of military personnel, according to the investigation, of the president (), the vice president () and the minister () was also little commented on by this political camp.
It was already expected that Bolsonaro’s first-time allies would attempt the investigation. But most right-wing figures who do not have an umbilical connection with Bolsonarism also chose it.
Others sought to minimize the revelations, highlighting the resilience of Brazilian institutions and democracy. The PF concluded, however, that the coup did not go ahead just because the High Command of the Armed Forces made the attempt — whether it was due to democratic conviction or due to a lack of conditions to sustain an authoritarian government without international or popular support.
The weak reaction of a right not intrinsically associated with radical wings raises a warning, as political scientists have been talking for decades about the importance of political elites rejecting authoritarian initiatives.
The prevailing understanding is that, without the support of moderates, extremist sectors are less likely to be successful. In other words, the vehement condemnation of authoritarian acts by political parties and figures is a protective factor against democratic regression.
This is not the first time that traditional political groups have been silent or even joined in the face of speeches or the former president. In recent months, the discussion about January 8th had gained momentum in Congress.
During the Presidency, Bolsonaro’s authoritarian speeches were often applauded by important economic sectors.
This was what happened, for example, in June 2022, when businessmen during lunch at the Commercial Association of Rio de Janeiro, in which Bolsonaro said he would not comply with orders from the Supreme Court.
In the book “Ordinary People in Extraordinary Times: Citizenship and the Collapse of Democracy”, from 2003, political scientist Nancy Bermeo, professor at Oxford University (United Kingdom), develops the concept of “distancing capacity”.
Bermeo argues that one of the protective factors against authoritarianism is the willingness of the political elite to distance itself from and condemn acts of violence, even if they were perpetrated by allies, thus prioritizing democracy.
In 1978’s “The Collapse of Democratic Regimes,” acclaimed political scientist Juan Linz wrote about the role of governments in the decline of democracy. He defined them as those who are willing to encourage, tolerate, hide or justify actions that exceed democratic limits.
“Parties become suspect when, based on ideological affinity, agreement with some specific objectives or policies, they make a distinction between means and ends. They reject the means as unworthy and extreme, but excuse them and do not publicly denounce them for agreeing with the objectives pursued.”
Linz further wrote that political violence, assassinations, conspiracies and failed military coups are tests to identify semi-loyals.
The Linz concept was recovered by political scientists Steven Levitsky and Daniel Zibblat in . They blame the Republicans they supported despite their anti-democratic demonstrations, paving the way for the invasion of the country by not promptly recognizing their defeat in 2020.
In the preface to the Brazilian edition, the authors argued that institutions and politicians dealt better with the crisis in Brazil, firmly rejecting the democratic threat.
At the time, there were already counterpoints to this understanding, but now they are piling up.
After the conclusion of the Federal Police investigation, the former president, who arrived during an institutional crisis with the STF, stated that there is no climate for a coup.
Temer also minimized the participation of military personnel in the assassination plan narrated by the PF, saying that only a few were involved.
Senator Ciro Nogueira, president of the PP, wrote on social media that he is certain of the innocence of Bolsonaro, his ally, but did not comment on the revelations.
The senator, who dropped his robe to become the former president’s Minister of Justice, with whom he later broke up, said that, without the release of the PF report, any value judgment was “unfeasible”. Five days after the content was made public, he still had not spoken out.
Asked about Bolsonaro’s indictment, the governor of Goiás and presidential candidate said: “So what? Life goes on. If I were to worry about the little things, I wouldn’t govern.” Cláudio Castro (PL), governor of Rio de Janeiro, said that he does not believe in a coup attempt and that there were people “making trouble”.
Governor of Paraná, Ratinho Jr. (PSD) that “indictment is not synonymous with conviction”. “It is even necessary to wait so that the investigation work is not compromised, and the accused are not victims of any hasty value judgment.”
The governor, Bolsonaro’s pupil, suggested the investigation, but did not detail his arguments. A strong man of his administration in São Paulo, the president of the PSD, Gilberto Kassab, said that he would wait for the secrecy to be broken, but that “this page has turned.” “That we can identify that there was nothing that could contaminate our democracy,” he said.
The governor of Minas Gerais, the president of the Chamber of Deputies, and the presidents of the MDB, Baleia Rossi, and the Republicans, Marcos Pereira, did not speak out.
WHAT RIGHT-RIGHT AND CENTER-RIGHT POLITICIANS SAID ABOUT THE PF REVELATIONS
Minimized, discredited or said they would wait for the investigation report
Michel Temer (MDB), ex-president
“Let’s face it, a real coup is only possible when the Armed Forces are willing to do it. It wasn’t the institution as a whole”
Ciro Nogueira (PI), senator and president of the PP
“There are things I’m sure about and one of them is Jair Bolsonaro’s innocence”
Ronaldo Caiado (União Brasil), governor of Goiás
“So what? Life goes on. If I were to worry about the little things, I wouldn’t govern”
Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), governor of São Paulo
“There is a widespread narrative against President Jair Bolsonaro that lacks evidence. The president respected the results of the election and the inauguration took place in full normality and respect for democracy”
Cláudio Castro (PL), governor of Rio de Janeiro
“What I believe is that there were troublesome people making trouble, and that they need to be punished”
Ratinho Jr. (PSD), governor of Paraná
“It is even necessary to wait so that the investigation work is not compromised, and the accused are not victims of any hasty value judgment”
Sergio Moro (União Brasil-PR), senator
“Without the investigation report being made public, any value judgment is impossible”
Gilberto Kassab, president of the PSD
“I reserve the right to wait for the secrecy of these processes to be broken. That we can identify that there was nothing that could contaminate our democracy”
Silenced
Arthur Lira (PP-AL), president of the Chamber of Deputies
Baleia Rossi (SP), federal deputy and president of the MDB
Marcos Pereira (SP), federal deputy and president of the Republicans
Romeu Zema (Novo), governor of Minas Gerais
Condemned or recognized the seriousness of the facts investigated
Eduardo Leite (PSDB), governor of Rio Grande do Sul
“Once the evidence is proven, everyone involved in this plot, at all levels, needs to receive rigorous punishment. Any action aimed at destabilizing our democratic system must be severely combated”
Eduardo Paes (PSD), mayor of Rio de Janeiro, in
“These coup attempts and these scary stories that we are seeing now have their origins in their political crusade. I do not mess with a coup plotter or any criminal”
Otoni de Paula (MDB-RJ), deputy federal
“I need to express my total repudiation of Senator Flávio Bolsonaro’s statements, when he says that thinking about killing someone is not a crime. If the news is proven, there was not just thought, there was planning. We who defend Christian values cannot agree with this speech”
João Amoêdo, one of the founders of the Novo party
“I hope that Justice will do its part quickly and rigorously: judge the serious coup attempt, including planning murders, convict those responsible and, thus, overturn yet another false narrative”
Soraya Thronicke ( Podemos-MS ), senator
“Unfortunately, many Brazilians continue to live under a collective cognitive dissonance, but I will continue hand in hand with the truth that, sooner or later, prevails. May the hostages of the Bolsonarista sect wake up from this shameful illusion!”
