President Bolsonaro heading down a dangerous road

Since the days of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the early 1930s U.S., the first 100 days in government have been used as a yardstick to measure the popularity and success of administrations around the world. Back then, Mr. Roosevelt made use of a post-election high in approval ratings—as well as a lack of negative baggage with Congress—to approve an extensive set of bills that were the most ambitious expansion of the government’s role in society, later becoming known as the “New Deal.”

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro also promised his own form of a New Deal—except this one involves neoliberal shock economics and a rupture with traditional politics. Late in January, the government published a bold list of goals for its first 100 days, including the formal independence of the Central Bank, a national literacy program, new anti-crime legislation—and, of course, a pension reform.

But the general feeling in Brasília is that, as we approach the three-month mark, the government has yet to actually start work. The president has spent the last week trading digs with House Speaker Rodrigo Maia, one of the most fervent defenders of pension reform. Mr. Maia has not been spared by the most faithful Bolsonaro supporters—and has been at the receiving end of social media attacks by Carlos Bolsonaro, the president’s son and...