Brazil groups look to channel anger into political action
Sarah Dilorenzo, Associated Press
Updated 3:57 am, Thursday, December 7, 2017
Brazil groups look to channel anger into political action
Sarah Dilorenzo, Associated Press
Updated 3:57 am, Thursday, December 7, 2017
SAO PAULO (AP) —
After one of the deepest recessions in its modern history, the largest corruption scandal in Latin America and more than a year under what may be the most unpopular president in the world, Brazilians are desperate for something different — so desperate that some are calling for the return of a military dictatorship.
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Even though President Michel Temer's popularity ratings have dipped close to the margin of error above zero, his allies in Congress have twice been able to block efforts to have him tried on corruption charges sought by federal prosecutors. Many lawmakers are wary of such trials because many of them, too, have been implicated in corruption scandals.
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Party leaders keep tight control over who can run, as well as the funds they need to campaign, making it nearly impossible for newcomers who challenge the status quo. Existing politicians often designate a successor — many times a child or at least a protege, as was the case when former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva championed Dilma Rousseff. The byzantine party system and rampant corruption have also turned off many younger Brazilians, leaving the country still largely in the hands of the generation that took power when Brazil returned to democracy in the 1980s.
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The growing fury at traditional politicians has helped lawmaker Jair Bolsonaro, who lauds the country's 1964-1985 military regime and has been ordered by courts to pay fines for racist, homophobic and sexist comments. He has risen to second place in preference polls ahead of next year's presidential election.
http://www.chron.com/news/world/article/Brazil-groups-look-to-channel-anger-into-12411927.php