Confusion, Incoherence, Violent Protest, and Surging Pandemic in Jair Bolsonaro’s Brazil

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On May 31, 2020, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro egged on supporters who protested against Congress and the Supreme Court, and brawled in the street with anti-government activists in many cities. Concerns about institutional breakdown increased as Brazil achieved the dubious record of having the world’s second-highest number of coronavirus cases after the United States. Bolsonaro joined a protest wearing no mask, despite a local government decree mandating their use to slow the spread of COVID-19, noting that everyone has to die sometime. Meanwhile, the federal police carried out search-and-seizure orders against Bolsonaro’s allies in an ongoing probe, and the military struggled (and largely failed) to contain the coronavirus as parts of Brazil moved to end the quarantine, despite surging numbers of infections. Commentators struggled to offer coherent interpretations of the sprawling chaos.

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