Brazil Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes has ordered house arrest of former President Jair Bolsonaro after he violated the court’s restraining orders, allegedly courting the U.S. to interfere in his case.
The former Brazil president was put on trial for conspiring a violent overturn after he lost the election in 2022, similar to the protest of U.S. President Donald Trump’s supporters who stormed the U.S. Capital on January 6, 2021.
However, unlike Trump, Bolsonaro’s political career may come to an end as his right-wing movement fractured while the court banned him from running for public office until 2030. Nonetheless, his supporters and key allies, like Trump, will not stand for it.
Trump threatened to impose a 50% tariff on Brazil’s goods or higher unless Bolsonaro’s trial is put to an end, while the U.S. State Department promised to hold everyone involved in this arrest accountable.
Although receiving support from the U.S., some of Bolsonaro’s supporters are not happy with Trump’s tariff tactics. They speculated that this move would rally support behind President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s administration.
