Last week, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva postponed a long-awaited cabinet reshuffle that would accommodate parties from the so-called “Big Center,” a loose federation of rent-seeking parties, within the government’s coalition. Lula is currently in South Africa for a summit of BRICS nations and will announce the new ministerial roster on his return next week.
However, this delay is a mistake that might cost the government political capital (already a scarce resource) during a crucial time for its agenda. The Lula administration already spent the first legislative session of the year struggling to form a cohesive and stable coalition.
In this context, it is hard to overstate the importance of the cabinet reshuffle, especially since Congress is moving to consider fiscal and tax reforms.
Executive-Legislative relations in perspective
As previously explained in The Brazilian Report,...