Analysis: "The video from the ministerial meeting may lead to new investigations against Bolsonaro"

When Justice Minister Sergio Moro resigned from the government, he began a personal vendetta directed at the president. He accuses Bolsonaro of obstructing justice by trying to stop criminal investigations against the president's sons. And now the Supreme Court has chosen to publish parts of the evidence - a video recording of a ministerial meeting from April 22 this year.

Here is a selection of what was said during the meeting:

President Bolsonaro: "I'm not going to let them fuck with my family."

The Minister of Education: "For my part, we can throw all those shit piles in jail and start with the Supreme Court."

Finance Minister: "China is the hard guy you know you have to endure."

The Minister of Human Rights: "We want to see governors and mayors in prison".

The Minister for the Environment: "When there is total media shadow and all the focus is on covid-19, we should change the entire environmental regulations".

In the early 2000s, the future looked bright for Brazil - the giant country was considered one of the developing countries that could challenge the traditional superpowers of the new century. Prosperity grew as the world economy thirsted for the country's raw materials and agricultural products and millions of Brazilians lifted out of poverty. US Obama called the then head of state Lula da Silva "the world's most popular president." The table was set - the 21st century was to become Brazil's.

Today that image feels like a distant fantasy. The Labor Party PT's board began to cease when falling commodity prices caused an economic crisis and corruption was revealed. Ten turbulent years marked by scandals, economic recession and open war between the country's institutions have since put the dream of the great power of Brazil in ruins. In the fifth largest country in the world, the scandals are steadily releasing at an ever faster rate. And the outside world is watching big-eyed. Ten years ago, the world wondered how far Brazil's success story could carry. Now the question is instead - how far down in national self-harm behavior can the country sink?

The video from the ministerial meeting could lead to new investigations against Bolsonaro and his ministers. But for the state of opinion in Brazil, the recording probably does neither from nor to. Most Brazilians already have a definite view of the country's government and the third of the population that seems to support Bolsonaro, regardless of what happens, sees media revelations and legal proceedings as a witch hunt for their hero. 

For the supporters, it reinforces the image of the president as a brave outsider who makes up for a corrupt establishment. Many of Bolsonaro's most dedicated supporters come from Brazil's powerful free churches that share the president's deeply conservative views on family, gender and sexuality. And in that group, shared values ​​still weigh much more heavily than political scandals.

Several opposition politicians have proposed to dismiss Bolsonaro through national law. But in order for it to become a reality, a majority of Congress members are required and so far it is lacking. Another scenario that has been speculated is that the many military in the government would tire of the president and force him to resign. But there are still no signs of that - rather the opposite.

When the Supreme Court on Friday demanded that Bolsonaro's cellphone be seized for investigation into the abuse of power, the country's security minister - the retired general Augusto Heleno - responded with an open letter warning of "unpredictable consequences" if the president's integrity is violated.

The great tragedy is that Brazil is now completely preoccupied with its scandals rather than dealing with the country's burning problems: the pandemic that is reaping more and more deaths, the rampant devastation in the Amazon, an inefficient and costly state apparatus, extensive poverty and crime in vulnerable areas and a police force. which kills more civilians than anywhere else in the world. The discussions on solutions to these challenges are shining today with their absence in Brazil. The country is fully charged with counting the president's swearing.