All but one of Brazil’s presidents since the return of democracy in 1985 have ended their careers ignominiously. Two were impeached, two tarnished by corruption allegations, one jailed and another triggered a financial crisis in a subsequent role. Only Fernando Henrique Cardoso, a centrist who governed from 1995-2002, has his reputation intact.
After forcing out the respected justice minister Sérgio Moro last Friday, Jair Bolsonaro now appears hell-bent on joining his predecessors in the presidential hall of horrors. Mr Moro was the second key minister to go in eight days; Mr Bolsonaro had fired the popular health minister the previous week for resisting presidential efforts to play down the coronavirus pandemic.
Mr Moro’s resignation is particularly serious for two reasons. Firstly, he was a hero for Mr Bolsonaro’s conservative backers. In his previous role as an anti-corruption judge, he helped to jail leftist icon and ex-president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Secondly, Mr Moro alleged that he quit in protest at the president’s decision to fire the national police chief and replace him with a more pliant individual willing to share intelligence on current investigations. Brazilians suspect that Mr Bolsonaro’s manoeuvres aimed to shield his powerful sons from prosecution in investigations covering illegal campaign financing and links to paramilitaries.