U.S. President Donald Trump listens during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy (not pictured) and European leaders amid negotiations to end the Russian war in Ukraine, at the White House (Reuters)
Brazil writer Jack Nicas tells the New York Times that a despot-weary Brazil has had it with President Donald Trump chest-thumping for his despot Brazilian friend.
In an article entitled “Brazil Keeps Telling Trump to Get Lost,” Nicas said Trump made his strong-arm tactics clear.
“Drop the charges against former President Jair Bolsonaro of attempting a coup,” writes Nicas. “To show he was serious, he hit Brazil with punishing tariffs, launched a trade investigation and imposed some of the most severe sanctions at his disposal against the Supreme Court justice overseeing the case.”
READ MORE: 'Republican for Trump': Alleged Kirk shooter's grandmother confirms entire family is MAGA
But Brazil responded on Thursday by convicting Bolsonaro anyway, handing him more than 27 years in prison for overseeing a failed plot to retain power after losing the 2022 elections.
“Does anyone believe that a tweet from a foreign government official will change a ruling in the Supreme Court?” said Justice Flávio Dino as he cast his vote to convict Bolsonaro.
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s poll numbers, meanwhile, keep rising as he shows the U.S. how to properly deal with a despotic president, and he remains “fiercely backed by Brazil’s democratic institutions,” said Nicas.
Additionally, when Trump’s retaliatory 50 percent tariffs on Brazilian exports kicked in, Brazil’s global exports rose 4 percent because China saw an opening — thanks to Trump — and eagerly stepped up to the plate.
READ MORE: 'Paxton has got to drop out': Internet erupts over details of MAGA AG's alleged affair
Nicas said Trump’s government has “already used some of its most powerful tools,” and if the tariffs continue American voters may start demanding why they have pay more for beef, coffee and sugar just to protect a convicted Brazilian ex-president.
“What is clear is that the White House’s campaign against Brazil did not stop Mr. Bolsonaro’s conviction, but it did hurt America’s image in the country and push its largest ally in the Western Hemisphere closer to China,” wrote Nicas. “Mr. Lula has spoken with President Xi Jinping of China at least twice since the U.S. tariffs took effect — but not once with Mr. Trump.”
Read the New York Times report at this link.