Bolsonaro sets new lows for aggression against Brazil’s Supreme Court

Half a century ago, Aliomar Baleeiro was bothered by the fact that most Brazilians had no idea what the country’s Supreme Court did, who was on it, and why it mattered. So, in 1968, he published a book entitled “The Federal Supreme Court, that Unknown Other” (O Supremo Tribunal Federal, êsse outro desconhecido) examining the history of Brazil’s highest judicial body. Mr. Baleeiro, a journalist and lawyer, sought to address what he saw as a general lack of understanding as to the role of the Supreme Court in Brazilian civic life, a milieu dominated by high-profile executives and legislators. 

His book is perhaps best remembered for its provocative title rather than for any immediate impact on the nation’s political discourse. 

Things have changed. These days, the Supreme Court is, if anything, overexposed. Recent events have made this abundantly clear, with the nation verging on a full-blown constitutional crisis over the president’s frustrations with particular members of the country’s top court. 

So, how did we get here? In their book “The Eleven – The Supreme Court, Backstage, and Crises” (Os Onze – O STF, seus bastidores e suas crises), Felipe Recondo and Luiz Weber argue that the 2005 Mensalão corruption scandal ushered in the current state of affairs, bringing Supreme Court judges into the limelight as larger-than-life individuals — no longer the Unknown Other. 

The core allegation of the Mensalão trial was that the Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva administration had been paying legislators directly to vote with the government on priority bills. The subsequent maelstrom polarized the country and focused attention on the Supreme Court,...