• Ex-president #FernandoHenriqueCardoso (#FHC) had lunch with Ex-president #Lula at Ex-#SupremeCourt (#STF) judge-minister #NelsonJobim's home to make political peace with Lula. FHC was president two times in the 90's and until early 2000's, and his administration was responsible for the creation of Brazil's current money, the real. He and Lula were, back then, the biggest representations of the right and the left, respectively, with their parties fiercily opposing each other. Just a couple of years ago FHC was recorded on video saying, “I HEARD DURING 13 YEARS SOMEONE [Lula] SAY, 'NEVER BEFORE [IN THIS COUNTRY SUCH A GOOD THING WAS DONE/HAPPENED]. ACTUALLY, NEVER BEFORE THERE WAS SO MUCH ROBBERY. [...] BRAZIL IS BROKEN! BRAZIL WAS BROKEN BY PT [Workers Party], IT WAS BROKEN BY THE LULOPETISM, AND THIS CURRENT CRISIS, AS GOVERNOR #ALCKMIN PUTS IT, 'WILL HAVE A HIGH COST ON BRAZILIANS.' [...] IN THE US, I WAS RECENTLY PAID A HOMAGE, AND THEY SAID I LOST POPULARITY. POPULARITY WE LOSE AND WE REGAIN. WHAT I NEVER LOST WAS MY CREDIBILITY.” Many political analysts are struggling to see the strategy behind FHC's support for Lula. He basically threw himself and his party under the bus, since his party was trying to picture itself as a third, a moderate alternative. They have not convincing too many, but some PSDB politicians have been doing a reasonable job, meaning people's perspective on them was not getting bad at a high rate, so we thought they were trying to keep the rate slower until it stopped and then get back to go up. What could be going on there? Does FHC and the PSDB has a heck of a card under their sleeve that's beyond any political analyst can guess? Is it desperation? Is it FHC saying “effe the world” and coming out (before he dies) as the leftist he always was inside? Is it some kind of pressure beyond the party's power to control?
• The decision of the #SupremeCourt (#STF) whether the federal police will be allowed to investigate the STF's president #Toffoli for being accused of receiving millions in bribery to help candidates in electoral complication when he was the president of the #SupremeElectionCourt (#STE) will come out on Friday. There is a lot of doubt this permission will be granted, since an eventual arrest of such a high profile judge (if he ever steps a foot in jail, which is already a far-fetched scene in Brazil) could result in a chain reaction and could affect other judge-ministers, some suggest.
• The ex-minister of health Eduardo #Pazuello, who is a military, attended the motorcycle rally organized by President #Bolsonaro and now some military and the opposition is asking for his punishment for the fact that he is an ative-duty general, and as such, he could not attend political events. If he is, he'll become a reserve. After he left the ministry, he got a job near the presidency so he could continue close to Bolsonaro. Him becoming a reserve, at least politically speaking, doesn't do him any bad, since he left the ministry with a good approval rate, a great relationship with the administration, no apparent rejection from most people regarding his performance while dealing with the #COVID crisis in #Manaus, and many others are trying to convince him to run for governor of his homestate #RiodeJaneiro.
• President #Bolsonaro organized another motorcycle rally this last Sunday, this time in #RiodeJaneiro, and the number of riders is already, and by far, the largest of any motorcycle event ever hosted there. The fact that he is the president played a factor, obviously, but the massive attendance is one (more) evidence that he is not the “most unpopular president in history” the big old marxist mainstream media tries to sell 24/7. At the end of rally, #Bolsonaro spoke to the attendees.
• The Federal Police foiled a school shooting from happening in #Brasilia. It was an American agency that informed the Brazilian police about a 19-year-old girl who was planning to commit #massshootings in several places. She has already confessed to the plan, but police has not released her name yet because they apparently have evidence that she is linked to some group.
• Last week, President #Bolsonaro made a surprise helicopter landing on a public soccer field at a small city called #SenadorLaRocque in the State of #Maranhao, an allegedly leftist stronghold, as is known to be the Brazilian northeastern states, but the amount of people that gathered to express support contrasts with the unpopular image the big old mainstream media tries to sell 24/7, that is that he is the most unpopular president in history.
• Journalist #OswaldoEstaquio, arrested twiced by the #SupremeCourt (#STF) and left paralyzed from waist down on the second time, when then reports said he had suffered an accident at hospital, spoke last week to the police about the event and made some revelations. He said that when he got to the detention center in December 18th last year, a police officer called him 'animal' because he was refusing to eat in protest for how he was being treated—he was accused, judged, and arrested by order of one judge-minister of the STF, #AlexandredeMoraes, which is considered unconstitutional. Not even a formal police report De Moraes made. Estáquio insulted the officer back the same way. The prison guard, in retaliation, told the other prisoners that, because of Eustáquio's misbehavior, they would not have their sunbath time and he was going to be punished. He was taken to the solitary, where, on the way, a police officer was telling him what to say and how to respond to an officer. At some point, he was slapped on his face, and at the end of the hall to the solitary, he was hit with a baton. Swearing and beating followed, and they demanded he called himself 'animal.' At some moment, “ONE OF THEM DID AN ARM WRENCH ON ME, THEN ANOTHER OFFICER GOT AHOLD OF MY OTHER ARM. A THIRD OFFICER CAME TOWARDS ME WITH A BATON AND STARTED TO CHOKE ME WITH IT. I FELT PAIN EVERYWHERE AND I RAN OUT OF BREATH. I WOKE UP SHIRTLESS AND WITH MANY BRUISES.” On the 21st he was quickly taken to hospital. A foresinc exam was not performed. One congresswoman, #BiaKicis, today chair of the Constitution Commission in the Congress, went there to give support to his wife (who had already been part of the Ministry of Human Rights' staff) and to help her have access to him, but police barely let her. Eustáquio is in home arrest for being paralyzed. Only a very small part of his interview was released, where he doesn't name any of the officers or give any details about how he got paralyzed.

• About 500 people marched in front of #RioGrandedoSul's gov't building in protest against the lockdown measures. #covid #pandemic
• Due to the controversial nullification of former president #Lula's sentence, General Luiz Eduardo Rocha Paiva, member of the gov't's Amnesty Commission, wrote and published a letter on the Military Club's website condemning the action, but although the Armed Forces expressing their disapproval is welcome and help the people feel that they are paying attention and are sharing the same outrage—better late than never—, two parts of the text sound disheartening. In one he wrote, “THE #STF (#SupremeCourt) GAVE A FATAL BLOW TO THE BALANCE OF POWERS, ONE OF THE PILLARS OF THE DEMOCRATIC REGIME AND OF THE POLITICAL AND SOCIAL PEACE.” What does 'fatal blow' means here if the military hasn't done anything? Ok, he may be referring to the next one. There should be some action on the next one or the phrase 'fatal blow' will have meant nothing. In another part, in the very beginning, he wrote, “[JUDGE-]MINISTER FACHIN'S DECISION, FREEING LULA FROM HIS SENTENCE, WAS A SLAP ON THE FACE (FORGIVE ME THE EXPRESSION) OF THE BRAZILIAN NATION.” Yes, he apologized for using the expression bofetada, which is a synonym of tapa ('slap'), and which in no way sounds rude or too strong. It's worth remembering Judge-Minister #AlexandredeMoraes hurt the #Constitution badly twice between 2019 and last month, when he, also monocratically, accused, investigated, arrested, judged, and sentenced; first a journalist, and then a congressman. According to the Constitution, #Moraes could have been arrested by President #Bolsonaro, who chose not to.
• The population of #AngradosReis, in #RiodeJaneiro, invaded City Hall. They are outraged by the mayor's decision to put a lockdown in place, after he ran in 2020 promising alignment with #Bolsonaro and no more strong restriction measures. A video shows people forcing their way in and one guard trying to keep them out. As they are entering they chant “WE WANT TO WORK!” Angra dos Reis does not have a high #COVID infection or death rate and the excuse the mayor gave was that the country is going through a hard time. #pandemic #lockdown
• #JanainaPaschoal, coauthor of former president #DilmaRousseff's impeachment, believes the reason behind judge-minister #Fachin's decision to nullify #Lula's sentence is the fear that even more damning messages leaked from #LavaJato become public. If Fachin's intention was to halt the investigations on the illegal practices in the operation, this was still not fully accomplished as the Superior Justice Court (#STJ) is still willing to proceed with the investigation. #dilma #moro #dallagnol
• The republican-like Congresswoman #BiaKicis was elected as president of the Constitution and Justice Commission in Congress. This is a big win for the #Bolsonaro administration. With her and a less partisan president in Congress, #Bolsonaro should see most of his projects at least go for a vote.
• After the Department (Ministry) of Culture announced that it will no longer approve money for events that can't happen under a regular planning schedule for any reason, like lockdown or renovation, the Brazilian Lawyers Association (#OAB) issued a letter criticizing the decision, claiming it to contribute for the destruction of culture. Secretary (Minister) #MarioFrias tweeted, “I HAVE A QUESTION: IS OAB DEFENDING OUR CULTURE OR THE PERCENTAGE LAW FIRMS RECEIVE FOR EVERY SINGLE PROJECT THAT'S APPROVED UNDER THE ROUANET LAW?” Law firms receive 15% of the money. OAB has been criticized for it's open leftist political activism. Many people consider it a disgrace for the country, not only for the activism per se, but for the fact that lawyers can't work without their approval and without paying them, even though a lawyer is graduated. OAB seems to be a union disguised as an association, and as with the majority of unions you are forced to pay, they don't need to convince you that it's worth paying them.

• Now that the antagonistic president of the #HouseofRepresentatives is gone and that the chair of its #CCJ* ('Justice and Constitution Comission,' a department that can be composed of up to 66 representatives and is responsible for analyzing the legality of a bill through public hearings before it heads to the House for a vote) is now a strong #Bolsonaro ally, Congresswoman #BiaKicis, the hopes of campaign promises to become a reality are back to high, such as, ending career-ending justice hearings for every single case of a law enforcement officer firing a gun, such as, giving Army soldiers the permission to be able to act as police officers in cases when they are sent to help keep or restore order (believe it, as of now, they can't shoot, but just hope their presence intimidates), and such as, approving the Gov't Administrative Reform. Of course, there are many more things relate to gun and administration issues Bolsonaro hopes to have the House finally vote.

“I am 73 years old and am campaigning for #Bolsonaro, and an upset young feminist lady approached me and asked me if I hadn't studied history; I answered, 'My dear, I lived it. It was not your pothead professor who told me.'”

This is a quote from a person called Maria Helena Cunha, who lives in #Araguari, #MinasGerais, shared on Twitter by the Congresswoman #BiaKicis.

#Brazil