MAGA Brazil
It seems there are forever new ways to make America grate again—most recently when explaining the enraged mobs in the Brazilian capital city of Brasília, who decided to ransack the government district in a fashion journalists have been quick to assume were copied from the actions of Donald Trump’s MAGA fans on Jan. 6, 2021.
That’s a superficial interpretation on the part of U.S. journalists, but I can’t pretend to do much better. I’m simply not that knowledgable about Brazil. Yet from a distance, it is clear that the rioters felt moved by the same issue set as the Jan. 6 American rioters: the integrity of elections and vote counting. In both countries, the rioters were supporters of populist presidents. The mobs thought they were saving their respective countries from extreme left-wing government they feared. And the two presidents refused to accept their electoral defeats publicly.
Differences abound as well. Brazil and the United States have very different histories, cultures, civic institutions, and constitutions. And no matter how little I know about Brazil, I am certain the country does not have as arcane a system of certifying the presidential election as is the one in our constitutional system. There was no Brazilian congress in session to certify the election in Brasília like there was in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021. There were no lawmakers on hand in the capital for rioters to chase around, to try to intimidate into overturning the election.
While both countries have strong presidencies, Brazilian history has more closely resembled the history of other Latin American countries: military dictatorships have taken over by force when the political system broke down. And while problematic for countless reasons, the dictatorships have also enjoyed some level of public support. Also, whereas the U.S. Constitution has been the foundation for government for over two centuries, the Brazilian constitution underpinning the present, 6th republic now in effect was adopted in the 1980s, after a 21-year “temporary” military dictatorship.
But how helpful is it to American news consumers to hear the comparisons to Trump? Journalists find the analogy helpful because it is much simpler to invoke Trump than having to explain some complex and nuanced issues that are unique to Brazil and its civic institutions—it’s the fastest, easiest way to tell the story.
On the other hand, U.S. journalists wind up doing that thing they can’t seem to refrain from doing: Making Trump into the center of everything. Making him look like the most powerful, most important figure anywhere in the world. If the main job of journalists had been to flatter and inflate Trump’s ego here, I’d have to rate their collective efforts here as an A+.
At any rate, if anyone has helpful insights or can suggest further reading regarding Brazil’s past or present, please let us know in the comments.
The execrable Steve Bannon appears to be involved in the Brazilian mess: https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/09/bannon-brazil-riots-trump-00077155. Here are a couple of excerpts:
"For months, Bannon and other far-right commentators have been following the unrest in Brazil and have encouraged the protesters to continue to challenge the results."
"In a video appearance at CPAC Mexico in November, Bannon said that the protests have “gone beyond the Bolsonaros, this is a fight that is saying, you went beyond the constitution, you used these machines, the judiciary, to shut us down in the media and we’re not going to tolerate it, it’s going to be very interesting to see how that plays out.” The video of his speech was shared by Eduardo Bolsonaro on social media."
Drive by HI...
Another day in the hell of EOY paperwork and tax payments...lol...
( I am fine really, just a bit overwhelming)