At certain times, politics is nothing more than a sea of muck that threatens to drown most of its champions, here and elsewhere in the world. It is also sharp intelligence, a correct reading of the situation, and courageous responses to challenges that arise, most of them suddenly.
The sons of Jair Bolsonaro Zero (Flavio, senator, Carlos, councilor and Eduardo, federal representative), joined by their half-brother (Jair Renan, last councilor), underestimated Michele, their father’s third wife, and mother of Laura, the youngest teenager in the family, and are now paying a heavy price for it.
They could have gotten along with her, but they never wanted to, as if Michelle were an outsider. Somehow, they always treated her like an interloper, without regard for the power she wielded over her father. Ultimately, they ignored the course of events, convinced that they would win in the end.
I did what I did. Flavio, the eldest, is a complete loser, his father’s boss, obedient to all his orders, devoid of imagination. Carlos, he’s the most troubled of all, but he’s done that too: he made his political debut, was chosen by his father to beat his mother in the Rio City Council election, and he defeated her.
As for the rebellious Eduardo, he only showed interest in being accepted among the extreme right throughout Brazil and the United States. He lost all the bets he made under the pretext of trying to save his father from being convicted of a coup. Jair Renan has always been and always will be their ugly duckling.
It was not Bolsonaro who opened the doors of politics to Michel. He met her and fell in love with her after his second wife cheated on him. At the time, Michelle was already working in the chamber offices. Politics was never strange to him. As First Lady, she learned what it took to take a solo trip.
If it had been up to her now imprisoned husband, who is serving a 27-year-and-three-month prison sentence in a federal police cell, Michelle would have remained merely his wife, Laura’s mother, and his children’s stepmother. But Michelle knew how to carve out a space for herself only, and at the very least she would be a candidate for senator in the Federal District.
The possibility of her aspiring to the presidency of the republic as an heir to the votes of the Bolsonian right cannot be ruled out. Michelle scores well in the polls, better than any of her stepchildren. She is distinguished from the boys in that she is evangelical and preaches constantly throughout the country.
Would he be a match for Lula? Right now, Lola is busy with other things. One of them: to put forward from the right, whether Bolsonarian or not, its main battle flags. Hence another phone call he exchanged with US President Donald Trump, and the proposal he made to him to work together against drug trafficking. He’s gotten the vaccination.
It will leave Lula Davi Alcolombre, President of the Senate, to speak alone against the nomination of Jorge Messias, Attorney General of the Federation, as Minister of the Federal Supreme Court. No one rules the ruler. No one obstructs the President of the Republic with impunity. The Colombian is committed to isolating Lula.
He threatened to reject Messias’ nomination because he wanted to appoint his predecessor, Rodrigo Pacheco, to the Supreme Court. Messias’ hearing in the Senate Constitution and Justice Committee was scheduled for the 10th day so as not to give him time to win votes. He became a target of criticism. The session was moved to another date.
Colombi are more vulnerable than they seem. He will end up backing down in a fight that neither he nor anyone else in his position can win. It’s just a matter of time.
All columns from Noblat’s blog at Metropoles