Even in the face of resistance from senators in accepting President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s favorite for Luís Roberto Barroso’s seat on the Federal Supreme Court (STF), the government should not make grand gestures before making the appointment of the Union’s attorney general, Jorge Messias, official. Aides predict that Lula will only have one conversation with the former president of the Senate Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG), the preferred name of the House leadership.
The idea is that if Pacheco is convinced to give up and propagate to his peers that he accepts Messiah’s nomination, resistance will be dissipated. A PT member currently in the Senate recognizes that the difficulties in approving the Union’s attorney general will be greater than they would be with Pacheco, if Lula gave in and chose him. This leadership, however, does not believe in the rejection of Messiah.
In Lula’s party, the possibility of the president of the Senate, Davi Alcolumbre (União-AP), Pacheco’s number one defender in the Supreme Court, starting to retaliate against Planalto is also ruled out. For the government’s ally, it would not make sense for Alcolumbre to enter a war in which he would have nothing to gain. This is because in the event of a possible rejection of his nominee, Lula, given his history, would not capitulate and change the chosen one.
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The expectation is that Messiah’s nomination will be announced in the next few days. For now, the Union’s attorney general has avoided movements so as not to expose himself. When the nomination is confirmed by Lula, Messias must start looking for senators. The strategy is to seek out all parliamentarians, including opposition ones. The current AGU must count on the help of evangelical senators to be approved.
In the Senate, the uncertainty about who will be nominated for the Supreme Court is closely monitored by Alcolumbre and Pacheco. The two advocate that Lula listen to the House before dropping the hammer. The senators’ assessment is that the PT member is trying to calibrate the decision so as not to open a new area of tension with the command of the Legislature, especially after a sequence of votes in which the government faced defeats. The Senate, however, was a counterpoint to the Chamber for Planalto recently, by overturning the Blindagem PEC and forcing the approval, for example, of the project that increases income tax exemption for those earning up to R$5,000.
The expectation is that, if Lula really chooses Messias, the government leader, Jaques Wagner (PT-BA), will assume the front line of political articulation in the Senate. It will be up to him to coordinate conversations with the center and opposition benches, replicating his performance in previous hearings for Supreme Court nominees.
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“This is a constitutional prerogative. Unless there is something discrediting, the Senate’s role is to carry out the hearing, to check whether the person has the necessary knowledge. You can’t appoint a crazy person. But, other than that, I think the Senate’s role is to approve. It was like that with André Mendonça, with Kassio (Nunes Marques), with (Cristiano) Zanin and with Flávio Dino”, stated Wagner.
Gonet’s reappointment
The articulation will take place in the midst of another test of strength between the Planalto and the Senate: the reappointment of Paulo Gonet to the command of the Attorney General’s Office, whose hearing is scheduled for the 12th. Some of the parliamentarians assess that the government’s performance in this vote will serve as a political thermometer for the name that is sent to the Supreme Court. To interlocutors, Gonet has stated his conviction that republican institutional reasons will prevail, as has occurred in the Senate’s deliberations.
The intention is to prevent a defeat in the PGR from contaminating the dispute for a seat on the Court. Even before Lula’s definition, some support began to emerge. Senator Mecias de Jesus (Republicanos-RR), member of the Evangelical Parliamentary Front, expressed public sympathy for the name of Messias, whom he described as balanced and prepared.
“The appointment of a STF minister is a decision that requires balance, preparation and commitment to the country. I believe in the technical capacity and competence of Jorge Messias, who has done great work at the AGU. Therefore, I will vote and work for him to be elected minister of the Supreme Court”, said Mecias.
In opposition, the tone is reserved. Senator Marcos Rogério (PL-RO), for example, avoids anticipating his position, but admits that the government may have difficulties.
“Depending on who he chooses, it could be more or less easy,” he said.
