While the government faces growing defeats and pressures in Congress, the discreet performance of its main leaders has divided allies and caused debates on the basis of the best strategy to contain damage. In times of political intensification, the articulators cast to defend the position of the Planalto Palace have remained distant, making room for the advancement of opposition and the isolation of ministers in Parliament.
The Lula government suffered on Monday, for example, a defeat that illustrates the situation well. Even after weeks of conversations to relieve pressure, deputies approved urgent request to accelerate the processing of a proposal that overthrows the tax on financial operations (IOF), a measure prepared by Finance Minister Fernando Haddad. Prior to the vote, the Minister of the Secretariat of Institutional Relations (SRI), Gleisi Hoffmann, praised the conduct of the president of the House, Hugo Motta (Republicans-PB). Other allies of the Planalto also preferred to contemporary, work on the release of amendments, and not climb in rhetoric.
Today, a congress session is also planned in which a request will be read for the opening of the INSS CPI, of which the government will be targeted. Presidential vetoes should also be overthrown.
Ministers as a target
In recent weeks, two episodes in the Senate illustrated the weakening of the front line. During a session of the Infrastructure Commission, Environment Minister Marina Silva was harassed by senators and ended up leaving the plenary without receiving any public support gesture from government leaders.
No blunt demonstration came from Senator Randolfe Rodrigues (PT-AP), government leader in the congress, nor from Jaques Wagner (PT-BA), leader of the Senate government, who were not present at the most intense moment of the debate.
At another time, in the Constitution and Justice Commission (CCJ), the government suffered a defeat by the approval of the project that sustained decrees of indigenous lands signed by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
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At the moment of the vote, Wagner – who is part of the commission – did not register a vote and withdrew from the board, even with the presence of allies against the executive’s measure. The absence contributed to consolidating the victory of the opposition and exposed the fragility of the articulation around a sensitive agenda for the government’s environmental agenda.
In the IOF crisis, while Motta took the lead of criticism and gave time to the economic team to present an alternative, the government leaders in the House, José Guimarães (PT-CE), and PT, Lindbergh Farias (RJ) avoided protagonism.
Neither publicly defended the government or placed itself as a visible political interlocutor in an attempt to demobilize the text articulated by center parties that are part of the base and opposition.
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Sought, the PT leader in the house adopted a caution tone about the crisis caused by the tax increase and avoided a confrontation with Motta or Senate President David Alcolumbre (Union-AP)
“Hugo is raising important points, the issue of tax benefits (as an alternative to increasing IOF), but we have to make a decision so that it does not turn something that makes many rights. The government knows it has an important fiscal issue,” he said.
Base members recognize that there is no fierce style on the part of some leaders in uncomfortable government situations, but minimize this and say it is natural that joint members adopt a more pragmatic profile.
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It is also pointed out that often a style of combat would impair the government’s relationship with the presidents of the House and Senate. Even leftist members of Lula’s base evaluate that Motta and Alcolumbre represent the entire Congress, not only the government, and that stretching the rope in adverse situations would serve to make the climate worse.
Nevertheless, there is an intention in the House to correct the route to what happened to Marina Silva in the Senate. Unlike the party senators, part of the PT deputies intends to fight to obstruct and prevent the flexibility of environmental licensing from being based on the House.
On the other hand, the MDB leader in the house, Isnaldo Bulhões (AL), stated that no one in the government has sought him out to ask to vote against the new rules of environmental licensing, which worries the minister.
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“No one talked to me about environmental licensing, neither against nor in favor. I think it goes, there is no difficulty to pass the House, I have not seen any reaction. I do not know deeply the changes that the Senate made, but I see no difficulty.”
Through his staff, Jaques Wagner sent a note he had already released when Marina was the target of attacks on the Senate. “The senator actively participates in the Senate thematic committees, besides accompanying the plenary sessions and maintaining an intense political articulation agenda as a government leader in the house,” he said.
Without ‘coverage’
Also on the same day Marina was the target of the senators, Randolfe acknowledged that the government base has a fewer parliamentarians “arranged for combat” than opposition.
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“We have opposition parliamentarians who are more willing to combat than us. We have not been able to cover all commissions at the same time. This is a circumstance that has been given since February 1, 2023 when this current legislature took office.”
Articulation members recognize that there is no majority in Congress and that it is unfeasible to climb governing parliamentarians to serve as a shock troop throughout the important session for the government.
Even so, there is an understanding that the presidents of the Senate and the House, even with the adversities of the Executive to have a fragile base, have helped with the topics of interest to the government.
The government leader in the House, José Guimarães, denies that he does not commit himself to delicate themes for the Planalto.
“I am not absent from anything. I participate in everything, until Tuesday lunch with the president (Lula, Haddad and governing leaders),” he defended himself.
Ministers in Skirt-Just
Haddad is the target of deputies: In the House, Finance Minister Fernando Haddad was harshly criticized by the decree that increased the collection of IOF, and governing leaders José Guimarães (PT-CE) and Lindbergh Farias (PT-RJ) did not act to demobilize the text that overthrow the measure.
Lula Decrees Sustained: At the Senate CCJ, the government was defeated with the approval of the project that sustained decrees of indigenous lands signed by Lula. Government leader Jaques Wagner (PT-BA), who is part of the commission, did not register a vote and withdrew before the end.
Senate Marina Attacks: Environment Minister Marina Silva was harassed by senators during a hearing, and Senate government leaders Jaques Wagner and Congress, Randolfe Rodrigues (PT-AP), besides not being in the session, did not go out in their defense.
Next Tests
INSS CPI: The main focus of the Congress session today will be the reading of the INSS CPI creation application. After this stage, there will be the choice of members of the collegiate, who should begin work in the second semester, representing a defeat to the government.
Police Law: Lula vetoes should be voted on to points in the project of the Organic Law of Military Police. Among them are what they prohibits agents politically manifest using uniform and what establishes minimum percentage of 20% of places for women in competitions.
Amendments to pay salary: A resolution that releases the use of parliamentary amendments to pay salaries of health professionals should also be voted. The theme has been the target of clashes between government and parliamentarians, which have been pressing for greater speed in transfers.
