"Brazil’s president dodges bribery charge, but risks remain" by Peter Prengaman and Mauricio Saverese Associated Press August 03, 2017
BRASILIA — With his job on the line, President Michel Temer eked out a victory in a congressional vote over a bribery charge against him that has fueled angst and anger across Latin America’s largest nation.
See: Brazilian president avoids suspension over bribery charge
But there are more legal woes ahead and clear chinks in his governing coalition, so Temer will have little time to celebrate.
Members of Congress’ lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, voted 263-227 Wednesday night against suspending the president and sending him for trial before Brazil’s highest court.
The result effectively suspended the bribery charge, which was filed by Attorney General Rodrigo Janot in June. However, Janot is expected to charge Temer with obstruction of justice by the end of this month, which would prompt another vote that even Temer’s most stalwart supporters would rather not have to go through as elections loom next year.
In a troubling sign for Temer, the 263 votes cast in support of him fell far short of the crucial 308, or 60 percent of the 513-member body, that he needs to pass an overhaul of the pension system. It is an unpopular proposal supported by the business class, which has helped keep an otherwise deeply unpopular leader in power.
With the help of the CIA, there is no question about that. They wanted Rousseff and the leftists out and installed this corrupt right-wing fascist.
‘‘This is far from over,’’ said Rafael Salies, a risk consultant with the Rio de Janeiro-based Southern Pulse. ‘‘August may still have many surprises in store for him.’’
The vote on the bribery charge came after a full day of procedural wrangling by the opposition, maneuvers intended to stall and force legislators to vote in the evening, when many Brazilians were home and able to watch the proceedings being broadcast live. The moves may have worked.
While Temer’s opponents made impassioned speeches about the need for him to go, many supporters said nothing beyond the minimum to procedurally cast their vote. The measure was before the chamber because by Brazilian law a sitting president cannot be tried without the approval of the lower house, which is considered the conduit for the voice of the people.
It used to be here, but now it's AIPAC-occupied territory.
‘‘Brazil can’t change presidents three times in one year,’’ said Sergio Moraes, making a common argument among Temer supporters that it was worth keeping him for the sake of stability. ‘‘He will be investigated later.’’
A year ago, Temer, then vice president, took office after Dilma Rousseff was impeached and removed as president for improperly handling government finances.
Since becoming president, his administration has been rocked by repeated scandals while still managing to move unpopular legislation forward, such as a loosening of labor rules and the proposals to trim pension benefits.
I told you he was a right-wing corporate fascist.
All the while, his popularity has plunged. The latest national poll said just 5 percent of Brazilians approve of Temer while the vast majority said he should be tried for the bribery allegation.
That is not surprising, and one wonders how the hell he is still in office.
Thanking the lower chamber for the ‘‘eloquent decision,’’ Temer said late Wednesday it was time for his government to return its focus to reforms.
‘‘I won’t rest until Dec. 31, 2018,’’ he said, referring to the end of his term.
The bribery allegation stunned even Brazilians inured to graft cases, and represented the latest in a bevy of scandals flowing out of a mammoth investigation into kickbacks that has led to the jailing of many of the country’s elite the last three years.
That would be Lula, right?
A recording purportedly made in March emerged in which Temer apparently supported the continued payment of hush money to Eduardo Cunha, the powerful former speaker believed to have dirt on many politicians. Cunha is serving a 15-year sentence for corruption.
As part of the probe, it came to light that Temer allegedly orchestrated a scheme in which he would get payouts totaling millions of dollars for helping resolve a business issue for JBS, a giant meat-packing company. A former aide was arrested while carrying a suitcase with $150,000, much of which was allegedly destined for Temer. Temer denies the allegations and says there is no proof he received any money.
The beef scandal sure passed quickly.
Early in Wednesday’s proceedings, Temer’s lawyer, Antonio Claudio Mariz de Oliveira, tore into the charge against the president. He said the recording was illegally made and the suitcase of money was a red herring.
‘‘The suitcase of money was returned’’ by the police to the Temer aide, the attorney said. ‘‘Why was it returned? Because the president is a good man, an innocent man.’’
He's still $cum.
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Here is the opposite end of the South American spectrum:
"Venezuelan opposition figures taken into custody" by Anthony Faiola Washington Post August 01, 2017
CARACAS — Masked security forces staged middle-of-night raids early Tuesday to haul away two leading Venezuelan opposition leaders already under house arrest, possibly signaling an expanded crackdown on dissent after widely denounced elections aimed at boosting the authoritarian government.
That's like the hundreds of kick-the-door-down drug busts that occur across the U.S. every night!
The moves against Leopoldo López and Antonio Ledezma could intensify the international fallout after Sunday’s election, which created a new super congress stocked with backers of the government of President Nicolás Maduro.
The vote was decried as fraudulent by the opposition and prompted the Trump administration on Monday to slap sanctions on Maduro.
Related: Venezuela’s president disputes vote-tampering allegation
The international software firm behind the claim bowed to US pressure to cast doubt, and AmeriKa is the last one that has credibility when it comes to fixing and rigging elections, be it within or without!
Oh, did I mention there was no evidence of fraud?
In a video posted online by Ledezma’s wife, security forces are shown apparently dragging the opposition leader through the glass doors of a building.
‘‘They’re taking Ledezma!’’ a voice shouts in the background. A woman screams: ‘‘Dictatorship! Dictatorship!’’
Authorities only last month released López, 46, after nearly 3½ years behind bars and placed him under house arrest. At the time, the government called the decision a humanitarian gesture, citing his poor health, though supporters saw the move as an attempt to reduce international pressure.
Venezuela’s most prominent political prisoner and former mayor of a district in Caracas, López was arrested in early 2014 and handed a 13-year jail term after being convicted of inciting violence during a street protest. He became a symbol of resistance for opponents of the government, his portrait printed in bright colors on the T-shirts and flags of protesters who chanted, ‘‘Free Leopoldo!’’
In an interview with The Washington Post, Ledezma’s wife said.....
Not interested in what the Washington Post has to say about anything.
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You can do a scroll to see what the Globe has been telling me about Venezuela.
Also see: Chile Congress OKs bill to legalize abortion in some cases
CIA also aborted their democratically-elected government 44 years ago -- on September 11th of all days!
