Trump throws the luminol of hypocrisy.

Trump's decision to impose a 50% tariff on Brazilian products exposes, at once, the farce of several narratives. The Brazilian far-right, which constantly repeats slogans about patriotism and sovereignty, applauds the foreign leader who directly attacks the national economy. Agribusiness—which posed as a strategic ally of Trump and Bolsonaro—is now feeling the cost of confusing ideological affinity with commercial advantage. Patriotism on its knees has an expiration date. Trump shone a light on the surface that reveals not bloodstains, but the hypocrisy of these people.

The market, which loudly proclaims "openness," "competitiveness," and "free trade," reveals once again that its principles only apply to others. The United States has always been selectively protectionist—Trump merely takes this to the extreme, without disguise. In practice, it shows that real capitalism is not a contest between equals on neutral ground, but a mechanism of force, pressure, and privilege. The "invisible hand" only operates when it favors the strongest.

Just remember what they always say: that the state should be minimal, that Brazil needs to stop protecting its industry, that subsidies are distortions, that the world values ​​multilateral agreements and institutional stability. Well, Trump dismantles all of that with the stroke of a pen—and nobody calls it interventionism, populism, or a threat to the global order. When the liberal playbook is torn up in English, it seems to become mature geopolitics. But when Brazil attempts any move to defend its economy, the chorus immediately accusing it of Chavismo, backwardness, and "investor flight" arises.

Ultimately, the liberals who swear allegiance to the market live off the benefits of the Brazilian state: cheap credit, tax exemptions, incentives, and protections. And the far right, which poses as nationalist, has always bowed to foreign interests when they came packaged with Washington's seal of approval. Trump's tariffs don't contradict this system—they only reveal it. They expose the hypocrisy of those who never defended sovereignty, only their own privileges and a farcical discourse to deceive the unwary.

Those who are obsessed with the system will blame Lula, Moraes, the São Paulo Forum, excessive spending, the "popcorn bottle" scandal, the devil. But we have to be prepared to respond in kind—in the streets and on social media. Because the fare increase is just the bait. What's at stake is whether Brazil will yield on its knees or rise up.