Brazil • Jair Bolsonaro • Donald Trump • Mike Pompeo • China

 

Brazil’s Bolsonaro Is The Latest Right-Wing Strongman To Endorse Trump

Topline

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro endorsed Donald Trump’s bid for reelection Tuesday, the latest in a string of controversial strongmen to voice their support for the U.S. president, who is trailing in the polls against Democratic nominee Joe Biden.

Donald Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro at the White House in 2019.

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Key Facts

Bolsonaro signaled his support for Trump after signing a new trade agreement with the U.S., according to Politico, telling reporters through an interpreter that “God willing I will be able to attend” a second inauguration for the president, adding that his well-wishes are “from the heart.”

He isn’t the first controversial right-wing world leader to show support for Trump—last year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised Trump and referenced one of his own campaign slogans as the two spoke to a crowd in Houston, Texas, triggering criticism from some in his home country for appearing to take a partisan position in another country’s affairs.

Reuters in February reported Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said he believed Trump “deserved” to win the race for the Oval Office again after he said the president reacted well to Duterte’s call to end a military agreement dealing with U.S. troops stationed in the country, a decision that was later suspended.

In September, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán also revealed he was “rooting” for Trump, saying on state radio that “what the president represents is good for Central Europe,” according to the Associated Press.

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Key Background

Bolsonaro was nicknamed the “Trump of the Tropics” by some members of the media during his 2018 election campaign, who pointed to his populist approach and his hard-line views on issues like immigration and crime. He, like Trump, has also been slammed for making sexist comments about women. The comparisons only intensified this year, with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. The two leaders downplayed the severity of the virus, bashed social-distancing measures, pushed for early reopening to save the economy and were also both infected with the virus themselves. The U.S. and Brazil are two of the hardest-hit countries in the world in terms of total confirmed coronavirus cases, with 8.2 million and 5.2 million on Tuesday, respectively.