US lawmakers condemn rioting in Brazil by supporters of Washington-backed Bolsonaro

Some US lawmakers condemned the rioting by far-right supporters of the Washington-backed former President of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, after they stormed and vandalized government buildings Sunday.

They also called on the Biden administration and local authorities in Florida to extradite Bolsonaro back to Brazil.

In a dramatic escalation of the political situation in Brazil, thousands of supporters of Bolsonaro forced their way into the country's Congress and Supreme Court and ransacked the buildings.  Local media outlets estimated that some 3,000 people had taken part in the raids.

The riots capped months of tension following the October 30 presidential vote that Bolsonaro lost to Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Brazil’s newly inaugurated President Lula blamed Bolsonaro for instigating his supporters after a campaign of baseless allegations about the election result, vowing to bring those responsible for the "fascist" assault to justice.

“There is no precedent for what they did,” Lula told reporters in Sao Paulo State on Sunday. "All the people who did this will be found and punished."

The Brazilian president, who took office on January 1, also declared federal intervention in public security in the capital lasting until January 31.

He said the local militarized police force that reports to Rocha, a former Bolsonaro ally, did nothing to stop the advance of the protesters.

“I’m disturbed by the violence that took place in Brasília today,” Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.) wrote in a tweet on Sunday. “I stand with the democratically-elected government of Brazil and condemn the violence trying to undermine it.”

“Democracies of the world must act fast to make clear there will be no support for right-wing insurrectionists storming the Brazilian Congress,” Representative Jamie Raskin (D-Md) wrote in a tweet. “These fascists modeling themselves after Trump’s Jan. 6 rioters must end up in the same place: prison.”

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) wrote that the US “must stand in solidarity” with President Lula and his government, adding that Washington “must cease granting refuge to Bolsonaro,” who is currently in Florida.

“Nearly 2 years to the day the US Capitol was attacked by fascists, we see fascist movements abroad attempt to do the same in Brazil,” Ocasio-Cortez said in her tweet, referring to the January 6, 2021 incident when Trump supporters occupied the US Capitol while lawmakers were in the process of reviewing the certification of state electors which indicated Biden's victory. Some Trump supporters had hoped that this process could have resulted in some of the electors being disqualified, thus overturning the outcome of the presidential election.

It is claimed by some that the demonstrators were infiltrated and incited by provocateurs from US intelligence agencies, who orchestrated the “false flag operation” in order to get rid of Trump.

Some among the crowd clashed with police, and some made threats to beat up a number of Democratic lawmakers. Some also inflicted damage on parts of the Capitol building.

“When Americans show contempt for democracy, the contempt spreads,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) wrote on Sunday. “Those who are trying to overthrow the legitimately elected government in Brazil should be held accountable just like the traitors were here. America stands with @LulaOficial and the rule of law in Brazil.”

Representative Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) called on the Biden administration and local authorities in Florida to extradite Bolsonaro back to Brazil amid the chaos. Bolsonaro, 67, reportedly flew to Florida late last month as he is facing multiple investigations stemming from his time in office.  

“I stand with @LulaOficial and Brazil’s democratically elected government,” Castro wrote in his tweet. “Domestic terrorists and fascists cannot be allowed to use Trump’s playbook to undermine democracy.”

Biden conveyed "unwavering" support to Lula on a phone call on Monday and invited him to the White House next month.

"President Biden conveyed the unwavering support of the United States for Brazil's democracy," the White House said in a statement, adding that Biden, who is in Mexico City for a summit, invited Lula to visit him in "early February."
Lula accepted the invite, according to the statement.

Biden also condemned the riots in Brazil, saying the US will continue to work with Lula and his government.

"Today’s attacks are exactly why I pushed for the Senate to pass a resolution backing free and fair elections in Brazil,” Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) wrote in a tweet. “This is about whether Brazil is a democracy or not. We stand with the country’s democratically elected government and condemn this authoritarian violence.”

Presidents of Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Cuba, Costa Rica, and Paraguay also issued messages in condemnation of the attack on "the Brazilian Congress, Palace and Supreme Court by anti-democratic groups."

The Spanish prime minister, Italy's premier, and the president of the European Parliament issued similar condemnatory messages.

Brazil police restore order after pro-Bolsonaro ‘fascist’ protesters storm govt. buildings

Brazilian police arrest hundreds of protesters and wrest back control of key governmental buildings after they were overrun by unruly supporters of the ultra-right-wing former president Jair Bolsonaro.

Lula was sworn in on January 1, unleashing a barrage of rebuke against Bolsonaro for, what he called, his predecessor's egregious mishandling of the country's affairs during his mandate.

Hours before the monumental swearing-in ceremony, which was attended by some 30,000 Brazilians, Lula blamed Bolsonaro for causing hunger to return to the country, despite his own presidential rule during which millions were lifted out of poverty.

He said he had received a ruined country, whose former government had depleted all resources and undermined human rights.

Lula accused Bolsonaro's "negationist" administration of committing "genocide" by failing to respond properly to the COVID-19 pandemic that killed more than 680,000 Brazilians.

"Democracy was the great victor in this election...," Lula said on the day.

Bolsonaro has, however, questioned, without evidence, the credibility of the country's electronic voting system.

He fled Brazil to Florida two days before the end of his mandate, reportedly to avoid going through the ceremonial handing over of the presidential sash to Lula.

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