Jair Bolsonaro uses Brazil Independence Day rallies to deepen rift with Supreme Court


Tens of thousands of supporters of Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro have heeded his call to protest after he stepped up attacks on the Supreme Court and threatened to plunge the country into a constitutional crisis.

Key points:
  • An estimated 125,000 people turned out in Sao Paulo, short of the predicted 2 million
  • A former Trump advisor was detained and questioned for three hours
  • Saying "only God removes me", Mr Bolsonaro hinted at rejecting next year's election results


Mr Bolsonaro has been locked in a feud with the court, in particular a justice who has jailed several of the President's supporters for allegedly financing, organising or inciting violence or anti-democratic acts, or disseminating false information.

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He also told the cheering crowd in Sao Paulo: "I want to tell those who want to make me unelectable in Brazil: Only God removes me from there."
"There are three options for me; be jailed, killed or victorious. I'm letting the scoundrels know I'll never be imprisoned."

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He had predicted 2 million people would turn out in Sao Paulo. State security officials estimated the crowd at 125,000, crammed into the city's broad Avenue Paulista. (sound familiar?)

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On the eve of Tuesday's protests, he signed a provisional measure sharply limiting social media networks' ability to remove or block content.

Jair Bolsonaro uses Brazil Independence Day rallies to deepen rift with Supreme Court - ABC News