Fugitives, criminals, and bombshells

The group of fugitives in the Chamber of Deputies has been transforming into a group of "resigned" individuals, since cowardice speaks louder than any ideology they may profess. Carla Zambelli was the first, and Eduardo Bolsonaro and Alexandre Ramagem were almost certain to follow. With the Chamber presided over by a weakling, it is unlikely that justice will be done by stripping these three criminals of their political rights. In the Senate, it was expected that the "semi-amnesty"—disguised as a measure of proportionality, as they sugarcoat the pill—would not pass, leaving it to President Lula to duly veto the bill in its entirety.

A finger was put on the wound in a country that only imprisons Black, poor, and marginalized people, by highlighting the scandal that was the sentencing guidelines bill. Perhaps the National Congress, in approving the absurd sentencing guidelines, merely reflects the worst aspects of our society, since about 10% of the online comments on one of the articles in a major newspaper that denounced the approval defend the coup-plotting criminals. In any case, the favoritism shown to the powerful is blatant and inherent.

With the kidnapping of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, the local right wing is gaining courage to, once again, attack our democracy, believing it will have the strength to go ahead with any Bolsonaro candidate in the elections.

We saw Alexandre de Moraes facing a delicate decision. If he delayed the authorization for Jair Bolsonaro's medical procedure for too long, he would be criticized for political persecution. But if he authorized it, the chance of the criminal escaping was high. A good security scheme is necessary that respects the prisoner's health condition without creating another fugitive in the United States. He hasn't escaped yet, but the supposed fragility of the convict serving his sentence indicates that something rotten is being plotted.

The year promises even more from other angles. The current political bombshells have names and surnames in different areas of activity. It seems that if everything Jeffrey Epstein and Daniel Vorcaro know, or whose documents may reveal them, comes to light, in different spheres and scopes of power, just as happened with Mauro Cid, chaos will ensue in various governments and parliaments. Let the journalism not be intimidated and let it follow everything closely.