Good morning! Bolsonaro is engaging in populist economic programs in an attempt to boost polling numbers. Eduardo Leite gestures to the markets in his southern state. Senators take a roundabout approach to targeting the Bolsonaros in Covid hearings.
👏 Allow us to brag: Our reporting made its way into the Covid inquiry yesterday, becoming a topic of conversation among senators. Our new Brasília correspondent, André Spigariol, revealed information concerning a shady company involved in the Covaxin scandal. It’s thanks to our subscribers that we can continuously improve our work and make a bigger impact. Thank you!
Economic populism raises fiscal solvency doubts
President Jair Bolsonaro’s scheduled uprising failed last week and now the president is trying to recover its political footing by way of populist measures to improve his polling numbers. This week alone, the president announced:
- Increased income caps for applicants of federal housing programs and lower interests for loans by state bank Caixa (despite recent hikes to benchmark interest rates);
- A BRL 100 million (USD 19 million) housing program specifically for law enforcement agents;
- Doubling the number of families eligible for utilities subsidies. They will get cuts of up to 65 percent in electricity...