In today’s issue: Government proposes pension reform amid tensions with Congress. Supreme Court resumes trial that could deepen institutional crisis.
Government proposes pension reform amid tensions with Congress
President Jair Bolsonaro is heading to Congress this morning to present his pension reform bill—many of the details of which are still unknown. But the atmosphere is tense, as the House imposed the government’s first political defeat yesterday, striking down a presidential decree that gave senior officials the power to classify public documents as confidential. It is a bad omen for the administration, one day before the president presents his top priority for the economy.
Meanwhile, the political crisis generated by the president’s feud with his former secretary-general continued to have unpleasant developments. Gustavo Bebianno, the disgraced former cabinet member, leaked audio clips of conversations between him and the president, suggesting he has ammo against the Bolsonaro clan. While Mr. Bebianno denies he will go after the administration, the truth is he will remain as a ghost over the president’s office.
Due to the government’s political ineptitude, the Democratas party—which controls both the House and the Senate
—offered to handle negotiations between Congress and the administration. That could be effective, but...