In just four months in office, the ideological patchwork that forms ‘Bolsonarism’ has staged several internal wars. The main conflict is between the government’s military wing and a group of ideological zealots, guided by self-proclaimed philosopher Olavo de Carvalho. The two groups have been at each other’s throats on social media, accusing the other of essentially sabotaging the administration.
The conflict between the generals and the ideologues was at the center of the crisis within the Education Ministry—with Mr. Carvalho and his acolytes winning that round and controlling the department. The military top brass seems, however, to be winning the fight within Brazil’s Trade and Investment Promotion Agency, commonly known as Apex Brasil.
Apex is already on its third president of 2019—at a pace of almost one per month. On May 6, retired Navy Rear Admiral Sergio Segovia took office and immediately embarked on a clearout. The first casualty was the agency’s business director Letícia Castelani. She was handpicked by Foreign Minister Ernesto Araújo (who is ultimately responsible for the agency) thanks to her hardcore support for Jair Bolsonaro and...
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