Good morning! Today we are covering the chances of Jair Bolsonaro abandoning his current political party, as well as the admission from WhatsApp that their platform was used to send illegal mass messages during the election. Plus, reports of federal torture in Pará prisons. (This newsletter is for platinum subscribers only. Become one now!)
The crumbling of a ruling party
In a video published to social media yesterday, President Jair Bolsonaro is pictured alongside a supporter who claims he is running as a candidate for Mr. Bolsonaro’s Social Liberal Party (PSL). Taking his fan to one side, the president tells him to “forget the party” and suggesting that PSL chairman Luciano Bivar is “done for.”
Why it matters. Jair Bolsonaro joined the PSL in mid-2018 and could now be eyeing an exit, with the group mired in dummy candidate and illegal campaign financing scandals in Minas Gerais. Tourism Minister Marcelo Álvaro Antônio is under investigation by the Federal Police for his involvement in corrupt schemes and he has been summoned to a Senate transparency committee later this month. Leaving the PSL could be Jair Bolsonaro’s way of washing his hands of blame.
The Social Liberal Party was a political non-event...