[Maru]

Jair Bolsonaro: Brazil's former president sentenced to 27 years in jail for attempted coup
A panel of Brazilian Supreme Court justices has sentenced the former president to 27 years and three months in prison for attempting a coup to stay in power.
S: https://news.sky.com/story/jair-bols...-coup-13428791

Brazil's former president Jair Bolsonaro has been sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison for attempting a coup to stay in power after his 2022 election defeat.

The far-right politician, who ruled Brazil between 2019 and 2022, is currently under house arrest in the capital, Brasilia.

A panel of five Supreme Court justices handed down the sentence several hours after they found the 70-year-old guilty on five counts.

The counts were trying to stage a coup, being part of an armed criminal organisation, attempting violent abolition of the democratic rule of law, being implicated in violence, and posing a serious threat to the state's assets and listed heritage.

Bolsonaro's lawyers have said they will appeal the verdict.

The ruling will deepen political divisions in Brazil and is also likely to prompt a backlash from the United States government - with Donald Trump already sharing his thoughts on the vote.

President Trump, an ally of Bolsonaro, has said he was surprised and "very unhappy" with the decision.

[Maru]

US Press Secretary (pre-sentencing) (Sep 9th):

Youtube video

BBC:

How the coup trial of Jair Bolsonaro has divided Brazil
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4wx9zlpj5o

On Sunday, Brazilians celebrated their country's independence from Portugal as they do every year on 7 September: with patriotism, military parades, flag-waving and churrascos – Brazilian barbecues.

But with a verdict imminent in the trial on coup charges of former President Jair Bolsonaro, this year the day was marked by rival rallies.

Thousands took to the streets chanting slogans about freedom: some in defence of democracy, others in defence of the ex-president who stands accused of trying to overthrow it.

On Tuesday, five Supreme Court justices will start to deliver their verdicts one by one on whether Jair Bolsonaro masterminded a coup to cling to power after losing the 2022 election to his left-wing rival, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

The allegations include proposing a coup to military commanders, knowing of a plot to assassinate President-elect Lula da Silva and Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, and inciting supporters to attack government buildings on 8 January 2023 after casting doubt on the electoral system.

Bolsonaro denies the charges, calling them politically motivated, a view shared by his supporters – and US President Donald Trump.

Trump has labelled the trial "political persecution" and imposed 50% tariffs on Brazilian goods, as well as sanctions on Supreme Court Justice Moraes, who is leading the trial.

Jair Bolsonaro's son Eduardo, who successfully lobbied for the imposition of the tariffs in the US, has defended the move, telling the BBC last month that he believes "freedom comes first, before the economy".

But many Brazilians see it as deeply unpatriotic to support inflicting economic pain on Brazil for the Bolsonaro family's own political fortunes.

"Brazil is totally divided," acknowledged Bianca, who attended a large pro-Bolsonaro rally in São Paulo on Sunday.

...

MSNBC:

Karoline Leavitt floats threats of ‘military might’ over Bolsonaro coup trial
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...al/ar-AA1MijZP

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, once known as the “Trump of the tropics,” appears to be on the verge of a conviction for his role in a failed coup attempt launched after he lost his last election. And on Tuesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared to threaten Brazil with “military might” if Bolsonaro should face repercussions.

Leavitt’s eyebrow-raising remarks came Tuesday at a White House press briefing, after she was asked a meandering question related to two Brazilian judges who voted this week to convict Bolsonaro. (The final verdict is expected Thursday, after the other members of Brazil’s five-person Supreme Court have weighed in.) Conservative content-creator Michael Shellenberger — who was tapped in 2020 by Elon Musk to push the since-debunked “Twitter Files” conspiracy that alleged censorship by the U.S. government — suggested Bolsonaro’s likely conviction is related to “censorship” and asked Leavitt if the administration would respond if that prevented him from running for office in the future.

Leavitt’s response tried to portray the administration as a bastion of free speech and touted its tariffs against Brazil as a response to the case against Bolsonaro.

“I don’t have any additional actions to preview for today, but I can tell you this is a priority for the administration and the president is unafraid to use the economic might, the military might, of the United States to protect free speech around the world,” she said.

Trump is actually waging an open assault on free speech in the United States (famously, part of “the world”). So Leavitt’s spin here is detached from reality. But her reference to “military might” in the context of defending an ousted authoritarian ruler is noteworthy. Not only does such a threat run counter to the president’s campaign vow to avoid launching new wars, but it also arguably puts Brazil on notice that the U.S. may consider using force to prevent the country from holding Bolsonaro accountable.

It’s unclear whether Leavitt’s remarks here are mere bluster from a press secretary who’s made that her calling card. I’ve reached out to the Defense Department for clarity on its position on Brazil.

Nonetheless, Leavitt’s remarks are undeniably ominous. The administration’s missile strike on a civilian boat off the coast of Venezuela arguably demonstrates its willingness to use military force with South American nations that run afoul of its agenda or misalign with its politics.

And in the case of Brazil, many Americans may have concerns about the prospect of the U.S. military being used just to protect one of the president’s authoritarian allies.

[bots]

it's yet another example of a completely fractured country, it spreading everywhere

[Nicky91]

good news


this idiot who tried to make people drink bleach during the covid pandemic

[MTVN]

Seems a bit corrupt tbh. Will there be huge protests about this? I'm surprised there haven't been already as he had quite a big support base

[bots]

Originally Posted by MTVN

Seems a bit corrupt tbh. Will there be huge protests about this? I'm surprised there haven't been already as he had quite a big support base

yeah there have already been protests. It's another of these situations where half the population think he is guilty and the other half believe he is being persecuted

[arista]

Sentenced to 27 years in jail



Can Trump get him out of Jail

[Liam-]

That’s how Trump would have been dealt with in a decent society

[Liam-]

Originally Posted by MTVN

Seems a bit corrupt tbh. Will there be huge protests about this? I'm surprised there haven't been already as he had quite a big support base

A countries leader going to prison for committing a crime against the country is corrupt?

[bots]

Originally Posted by Liam-

A countries leader going to prison for committing a crime against the country is corrupt?

In South Korea, they jailed the head of Samsung for corruption and then released him to save the country's economy. These things are never as simple as they appear

[Maru]

Originally Posted by MTVN

Seems a bit corrupt tbh. Will there be huge protests about this? I'm surprised there haven't been already as he had quite a big support base

Originally Posted by bots

yeah there have already been protests. It's another of these situations where half the population think he is guilty and the other half believe he is being persecuted

Even in my own country, it's hard to tell exactly what is going on. The stuff I can tell is not very good, but imo, as a populace it's important to stay vigilant and not be too predictably reactionary because it's so easy to become victimized by either end of it in those situations...

The only thing I really don't like about it is that it's not a jury trial. A judiciary (what it seems to be here) would be easier to manipulate politically.

Originally Posted by bots

In South Korea, they jailed the head of Samsung for corruption and then released him to save the country's economy. These things are never as simple as they appear

So they were phoning it in.