Happy Monday! Today, the Supreme Court may be about to clip Bolsonaro’s wings as he scrambles for congressional support. Brazil is rushing to find hydroelectric solutions to the energy crisis, but one landmark project brings with it grave environmental risks.
Supreme Court could strip Bolsonaro of his political muscle
With a key congressional vote scheduled for this week, the Jair Bolsonaro administration has been deprived of its most important means of persuasion: pork-barreling. On Friday, a Supreme Court injunction suspended so-called “rapporteur-designated budgetary grants,” leaving the government on the back foot in its quest to gather congressional support.
- These grants are opaque, informal, and little-understood mechanisms that give lawmakers leeway over the federal budget. However, they are most often used as bargaining chips by sitting governments, distributing funds to politicians in exchange for support. In an article from May, columnist Beatriz Rey explained the ins and outs of these grants — called “Mr. Bolsonaro’s secret budget.”
- Supreme Court Justice Rosa Weber said these grants are “detrimental to the general population” as they reduce transparency and undermine the systems of checks and balances.
Why it matters. Tomorrow, the House is expected to hold the second round of floor votes on a constitutional...