Motta disrespects the Lula government and fails to meet with Haddad and Gleisi.

247 - Tension between the Planalto Palace and the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Hugo Motta (Republicanos-PB), reached an unprecedented level. On Wednesday night (25), Motta led the effort that overturned, by a large majority, the decree by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) that readjusted the rate of the Tax on Financial Operations (IOF).

According to Renata Agostini, from the newspaper The GlobeEven before paving the way for the government's defeat in the plenary session, Motta began ignoring phone calls from the Minister of the Secretariat of Institutional Relations, Gleisi Hoffmann (PT), responsible for the Planalto's political coordination. The minister tried, in vain, to open a channel of dialogue hours before the decisive vote. The same 'cold shoulder' was given to the Minister of Finance, Fernando Haddad (PT), who sent messages requesting a last-minute conversation and didn't even receive read receipts.

Sources report that Motta accuses the head of the economic team of acting with "disloyalty" by publicly criticizing agendas approved by Congress. According to the congressman, the government is betting on "us versus them" rhetoric to label the Legislature as a defender of "lobbies" and the "upper class." Irritated, he states that he is not willing to "play the government's game" and that he needs to safeguard the interests of the Chamber.

Motta felt even more compelled to challenge Lula in the IOF case after the Senate president, Davi Alcolumbre (União-AP), led a congressional session that overturned a series of presidential vetoes. The Chamber couldn't be left behind, according to Motta's associates.

In the Planalto Palace, the interpretation is the opposite. Lula's advisors see the Speaker of the House's stance as an attempt to anticipate the 2026 electoral landscape. Motta came to lead the House endorsed by centrist leaders interested in supporting a right-wing candidate in the next presidential race. For these aides, the escalation of confrontations serves to consolidate the congressman as a guarantor of the interests of large banks and asset managers—sectors severely impacted by the IOF decree.

Even before the vote, however, there were signs of unease. In the morning, Motta complained to colleagues about Haddad's "ingratitude," who, in his words, had received support from the Chamber to move forward with the tax reform, but was now demonstrating a "lack of recognition." At the same time, he sent a message to the Presidential Palace that he would only return to the negotiating table "when there is real coordination."

For government lawmakers, the impasse exposes the limits of the allied base. They recall that Lula gave positions and amendments to parties in the center bloc, but did not receive loyalty in votes with high fiscal impact. Meanwhile, according to members of the Republicanos party's political core, the episode proves that the government "missed the mark" by attacking Congress.

In an environment of mutual distrust, the economic agenda is at risk. Proposals such as the regulation of the new phase of tax reform and the vote on the 2026 budget may become hostage to internal disputes while Motta — strengthened after the defeat of the IOF (tax on financial transactions) — moves to keep the Executive branch under pressure.