Status: 12/31/2022 7:21am
Shortly before taking office, Brazilian President Bolsonaro left the country and went to the United States. In a video message he greeted his disappointed followers.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro left the country a few days before the end of his mandate. He was on his way to Florida, according to the official gazette. According to flight-tracking websites, a military plane took off at around 2:00 pm (local time) in the capital Brasilia, bound for Orlando. A number of cabinet members and government officials were authorized to accompany “the future former president” to Miami between January 1 and 30 to give him “advice, safety and personal support,” the Official Gazette said.
Further evidence of Bolsonaro’s departure was a statement from Vice President Hamilton Mourão’s office that he was now acting head of state. Official business is turned over to the deputy when a Brazilian president goes abroad.
Who delivers the presidential sash?
Next Sunday, former leftist president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will be sworn in as the new head of state. By leaving the country, Bolsonaro breaks with the custom that an outgoing president must be present at the inauguration of his successor. Now it is not clear who will have to deliver the presidential sash to Lula. According to Mourão’s press office, this is not one of his duties.
Bolsonaro employees, who are still eligible after the end of their term and who are paid with tax money, have been approved for a trip to the United States for the entire month of January. Bolsonaro was accompanied by his wife Michelle and daughter Laura. According to media reports, her two adult sons Flavio and Carlos are already in Florida.
Farewell video message
Since his defeat to Lula in the runoff for the top office at the end of October, Bolsonaro has hardly been heard of. However, a few hours before departure, he addressed his compatriots via social media. He has not been able to find a legal avenue or get enough support to change the course of history, Bolsonaro said in the video message regarding his deselection. He seemed to be holding back tears. “How difficult it was to sit still for two months, work to find alternatives,” Bolsonaro explained. “If you’re angry, put yourself in my shoes. I gave my life for this country.”
Bolsonaro also condemned an earlier bomb threat in the capital. This is not the time to attack other people. Rather, his supporters should try to build an opposition to the future government. “We’ve lost a battle, but we won’t lose the war,” he said. “The world doesn’t end on January 1.”
Disappointment among followers
In the pouring rain, a crowd of Bolsonaro supporters waited in front of the presidential palace, hoping for a nod from their own president. His farewell message then sparked the disappointment of many. “Traitor” and “coward,” some cried. A woman burst into tears.
After his defeat, some supporters of the outgoing head of state camped outside the military installations and asked for the intervention of the armed forces to keep him in power. Others blocked roads and highways, burned buses and trucks. Detectives are also investigating an attempted assault on the headquarters of the national police in Brasilia in December. Most of the 32 suspects in the case had had contact with the Bolsonaro camp, officials said. Many of his supporters still believe that the election results cannot be trusted. You talk about fraud.
