Ambassador to the US? "Outrageous lie"

247 - Outraged. That was Senator Marta Suplicy's reaction to the information that she would be appointed Brazil's ambassador to Washington during President Dilma Rousseff's presidential trip to the United States early next week. "It's an absurd lie," she told 247. "I want to know what's behind this baseless rumor, which, in my view, aims to diminish the importance of the trip." Marta will accompany President Dilma and was the first parliamentarian invited by the Planalto Palace for an international mission. "I am vice-president of the Senate, I am happy and committed to the House," she stated.

The information was published earlier today by columnist Claudio Humberto. Later, he even published negative repercussions that the possible nomination would provoke at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Read Claudio Humberto's statement below:

The choice of Senator Marta Suolicy (PT-SP) as Brazil's ambassador to Washington, which was considered a sure thing, has provoked great indignation among diplomats. The nomination shows that President Dilma has buried one of Itamaraty's most cherished achievements: entrusting foreign posts only to diplomatic professionals. "The news is a bombshell," admits a Brazilian ambassador to Latin America, irritated by the "cowardly attitude" of Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota. "In a parallel with the military, such a decision would be equivalent to appointing a civilian (or senator) to command the First Army, such is the demoralization for the institution." The precedent worries more experienced diplomats. "If an embassy like the one in Washington can be headed by someone outside the career, any other could. The floodgates are open – indeed, wide open. It's going to be a party," says a member of the top brass at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Brasília. Generally speaking, diplomats are divided between those who are incredulous, hoping that President Dilma will reconsider the matter, and those who believe that Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota has no alternative but to submit his resignation along with the nomination of Marta Suplicy. Some even joke, stating that, under the current circumstances, it might even be better if the senator replaced Minister Patriota himself – who, unlike his predecessor, "neither fights nor resists."