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MIAMI (AP) — The Biden medication is nether increasing unit from leftists successful Latin America arsenic good arsenic U.S. lawmakers to expel Jair Bolsonaro from a post-presidential retreat successful Florida pursuing his supporters’ brazen onslaught connected Brazil’s superior implicit the weekend.
But the far-right ex-president whitethorn pre-empt immoderate plans for specified a stinging rebuke. On Tuesday, helium told a Brazilian media outlet that helium would propulsion up his instrumentality home, primitively scheduled for precocious January, aft being hospitalized with abdominal pains stemming from a 2018 stabbing.
“I came to walk immoderate clip distant with my household but these weren’t calm days,” Bolsonaro told CNN’s Portuguese-language affiliate successful Brazil. “First, determination was this bittersweet occurrence successful Brazil and past my hospitalization.”
Bolsonaro arrived successful Florida successful precocious December, skipping the Jan. 1 swearing-in of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who became the archetypal elected Brazilian president not to person the statesmanlike sash from his predecessor since ideology was restored successful the 1980s. Bolsonaro is reportedly staying astatine the Orlando-area location of Brazilian mixed martial arts combatant Jose Aldo, a fervent supporter.
His sojourn to the Sunshine authorities went mostly unnoticed successful the U.S. until Sunday’s onslaught by thousands of die-hard supporters who had been camping for weeks extracurricular a subject basal successful Brasilia, refusing to judge Bolsonaro’s constrictive decision successful an October runoff. Their penetration of Brazil’s legislature and statesmanlike palace near down shattered glass, smashed computers and slashed artwork.
Almost from the infinitesimal the images of demolition were broadcast to the world, Democrats voiced interest astir Bolsonaro’s continued beingness connected U.S. soil, drafting parallels betwixt the rampage successful Brazil and the Jan. 6, 2020, insurrection by allies of Donald Trump who stormed the Capitol to effort to overturn the U.S. statesmanlike predetermination results.
Among those calling for President Joe Biden to springiness Bolsonaro the footwear was Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
“Nearly 2 years to the time the U.S. Capitol was attacked by fascists, we spot fascist movements overseas effort to bash the aforesaid successful Brazil,” the New York City lawmaker said. “The U.S. indispensable cease granting refuge to Bolsonaro successful Florida.”
It should beryllium a nary brainer for the White House, experts say.
Biden has ne'er had a adjacent narration with Bolsonaro, who made communal origin with Trump’s apical allies connected the acold right. And immoderate enactment to expel him is apt to play good successful Latin America, wherever Biden is courting a harvest of caller leftist leaders who person risen to powerfulness successful places similar Chile and Colombia expressing akin concerns astir threats to democracy.
“It’s 1 happening to marque statements astir enactment for democracy,” said John Feeley, a longtime U.S. diplomat successful Latin America who resigned arsenic ambassador to Panama successful 2018 implicit differences with the Trump administration.
“It’s different to really instrumentality enactment successful your ain home, wherever you person sovereign control, with idiosyncratic who is intelligibly successful league with the aforesaid folks who brought you Jan. 6,” Feeley said.
But truthful acold the Biden medication has proceeded cautiously.
On Monday, State Department spokesperson Ned Price, portion sidestepping questions astir Bolsonaro’s presence, said anyone entering the U.S. connected a alleged A-1 visa reserved for sitting heads of authorities would person 30 days to either permission the state oregon set their presumption with the Department of Homeland Security astatine the decision of their word of office.
Biden’s nationalist information adviser, Jake Sullivan, was likewise circumspect, saying lone that immoderate petition from Brazil’s authorities related to Bolsonaro would beryllium evaluated, taking into information ineligible precedent. Typically, the U.S. is reluctant to sermon visa issues retired of privateness concerns.
Feeley said the longer the Biden medication waits the weaker its enactment for ideology volition beryllium perceived successful the region.
One spot Bolsonaro seemingly isn’t going is Italy. The erstwhile president is the descendant of 19th-century immigrants from bluish Italy and Brazilian media had speculated for months that helium and his children would question Italian citizenship retired of fearfulness helium could beryllium prosecuted successful Brazil for corruption oregon his mishandling of the coronavirus pandemic.
But Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told authorities vigor connected Tuesday that Bolsonaro has ne'er requested citizenship — contempt being bestowed honorary citizenship successful 2021 by the tiny municipality wherever his great-grandfather was born.
“There are laws that code who gets citizenship,″ Tajani said, emphasizing his far-right-led government’s beardown condemnation of the raid connected Brazilian authorities institutions by Bolsonaro supporters. “It is not a political, discretionary choice.”
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AP Writers Matt Lee successful Washington and Colleen Barry successful Milan contributed to this report.
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