The US State Department defended former federal deputy Eduardo Bolsonaro (PL-SP), after his conviction in the First Panel of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) for coercion during the process. Sentenced to 4 years and 2 months in prison, Bolsonaro was convicted of coordinating sanctions with the American government against Court magistrates.
In a note attributed to a State Department spokesperson, the American government states that the sentence is the latest episode “in a pattern of persecution and legal warfare (lawfare) by Brazilian courts against their political opposition”. “Political debates must be resolved by democratic elections and not by convictions”, concludes the message.
The department’s statement was first published by Reuters and confirmed by Globo. The department is led by Republican Marco Rubio, who, at the beginning of the month, excluded Brazil from a list of US allies in Latin America.
— It’s incredible that, apart from Nicaragua, Cuba, Venezuela, which still faces some challenges, and, of course, Brazil, although it is in the middle of an electoral cycle, and, to some extent, the current government of Colombia as well — at least the president has been problematic — it is a region full of allies and leaders friendly to the United States — Rubio said in a session of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Eduardo Bolsonaro’s conviction had already been mentioned by President Donald Trump during the G7 Summit on Wednesday. The American said he heard “saying that they arrested Bolsonaro Jr.” . He ended up, however, confusing the former federal deputy with his brother, senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ), when saying that he was “doing well in the polls”. Flávio is the PL’s pre-candidate for the Presidency of the Republic.
— It’s been unpleasant. I heard they arrested someone running for office today. I found out about this after we left. I had just said goodbye to him (Lula) and I heard that they arrested Bolsonaro Jr. He was doing well in the polls, and they arrested him because he made a statement in Texas. They arrested him, or want to arrest him.
Moments later, Trump said that Brazil is a “politically difficult country” when asked if he had spoken with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) at the event about the designation of Comando Vermelho (CV) and Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC) as terrorist organizations.
— Yes, I spent a lot of time with him (Lula), actually — Trump, without detailing the content of the conversation — It’s become a bit of a complicated country, hasn’t it? Politically. It’s been a little dangerous politically.
