Brazil prosecutor says ex-President Jair Bolsonaro, a Trump ally, guilty of violent coup plot
Brasilia — A prosecutor asked Brazil's Supreme Court on Tuesday to find ex-president Jair Bolsonaro guilty of plotting a coup, in closing arguments after a trial that saw President Trump try to intervene on behalf of his right-wing ally. Bolsonaro is accused of seeking to overturn the 2022 election won by his left-wing opponent, current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
The prosecution told the court that Bolsonaro, a former army officer, and seven others were guilty of participating in "armed criminal association" and had sought to "violently overthrow the democratic order."
After the defense presents its closing arguments, a five-justice panel will decide the fate of the former president. If found guilty, Bolsonaro and his co-defendants could face up to 40 years in prison.
Bolsonaro says he is the victim of political persecution, echoing Mr. Trump's defense when he faced criminal charges before his White House return.
"It's not about imprisoning me; they want to eliminate me," Bolsonaro told news website Poder360 on Tuesday.
Prosecutors say Bolsonaro tried to overturn his 2022 loss in a plot that only failed because the military did not side with him. The plan allegedly included dozens of people and involved a plot to poison Lula and shoot a Brazilian Supreme Court justice. Bolsonaro's defense team has vehemently denied the charges. Bolsonaro has also been barred from running for office until 2030, after casting doubt on the country's electronic voting machines.
After the plot failed, violent Bolsonaro supporters rioted, rampaging through government buildings in the capital Brasilia in scenes that echoed the Jan. 6, 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol by Mr. Trump's supporters after the Republican lost to Democrat Joe Biden in 2020.
The trial has attracted attention from Mr. Trump, who returned to power in the 2024 election and continues to claim — despite this being rejected repeatedly by the courts — that he won in 2020. Mr. Trump has repeatedly called on social media for Bolsonaro's trial to be stopped, accusing the authorities in Brazil of mounting a "witch hunt" and a "disgrace."
On July 9, he took his campaign to extraordinary new levels by announcing plans to tariff Brazilian imports to the U.S. at 50%, again citing what he called a "witch hunt" against Bolsonaro. And on Tuesday, Washington said it was opening an investigation into "unfair trading practices" by Brazil, a move that could provide a legal basis to justify imposing tariffs on South America's largest economy.
Unlike the tariffs that Mr. Trump is slapping on countries around much of the world, including top U.S. allies, the measures against Brazil — which are set to take effect on August 1 — were announced in openly political terms.
Mr. Trump cited "Brazil's insidious attacks on Free Elections," among other issues, warning of further escalation if the country retaliated — something Lula indicated would happen.
Unlike many other countries that have been threatened with tariff hikes, the U.S. runs a trade surplus with Brazil, meaning Brazil buys more American goods than the U.S. buys from Brazil. Last year, the U.S. exported about $49 billion worth of goods to Brazil, and Brazil exported just over $42 billion in goods to the U.S., according to Census Bureau figures.
On Friday, Mr. Trump reiterated his claim that Bolsonaro was being unfairly treated.
"They're treating President Bolsonaro very unfairly," Mr. Trump told reporters, calling him "a good man."
"I know the honest ones, and I know the crooked ones," he added.
Lula has hit back at Mr. Trump's "interference," insisting that "no one is above the law."
Trump hits India with additional 25% tariff over Russian oil imports
Washington — President Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday imposing an additional 25% tariff on goods from India because it continues to buy oil from Russia.
The announcement by the president comes just a week after he said he would be slapping a 25% tariff on imports from India, as well as an unspecified "penalty," because of its purchases of Russian military equipment and energy. The additional tariff are set to take effect in 21 days, according to the directive. The latest action brings the total duties imposed on Indian products to 50%.
Mr. Trump criticized India then as having tariffs that are "far too high" and "the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary trade barriers of any country."
The president has sought to target countries doing business with Russia as part of his efforts to pressure the Kremlin to reach a peace deal with Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Steve Witkoff, Mr. Trump's special envoy, in Moscow on Wednesday, according to the Kremlin.
Mr. Trump has given Putin until Friday to agree to a ceasefire with Ukraine or face "severe tariffs" and other economic penalties.
Tariffs are a signature piece of the president's trade agenda, and Mr. Trump has used the levies as a way to force U.S. trading partners to the table to negotiate trade agreements. The president announced last week higher duties against more than 60 countries ahead of a Friday deadline for them to cut trade deals with his administration. Those tariffs are set to take effect this week.
The U.S. had a $45.8 billion trade deficit with India last year, an increase of 5.9% over 2023, according to data from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
Mr. Trump met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House earlier this year and said that the U.S. would be boosting military sales to India. He also said he and Modi reached a deal on oil and gas that would make the U.S. India's leading supplier.
Very Familiar. Does trump really think that slapping a Tariff on Brazil is gonna get them to change their minds? Why are we messing with that at all?
Tell you one thing, Brazil has more courage than we in America have. They are gonna put their criminal away. We re-elected ours with the help of his Corrupt party!
#GMSTRONG
“Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts.” Daniel Patrick Moynahan
"Alternative facts hurt us all. Think before you blindly believe." Damanshot
Trump hits India with additional 25% tariff over Russian oil imports
Washington — President Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday imposing an additional 25% tariff on goods from India because it continues to buy oil from Russia.
The announcement by the president comes just a week after he said he would be slapping a 25% tariff on imports from India, as well as an unspecified "penalty," because of its purchases of Russian military equipment and energy. The additional tariff are set to take effect in 21 days, according to the directive. The latest action brings the total duties imposed on Indian products to 50%.
Mr. Trump criticized India then as having tariffs that are "far too high" and "the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary trade barriers of any country."
The president has sought to target countries doing business with Russia as part of his efforts to pressure the Kremlin to reach a peace deal with Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Steve Witkoff, Mr. Trump's special envoy, in Moscow on Wednesday, according to the Kremlin.
Mr. Trump has given Putin until Friday to agree to a ceasefire with Ukraine or face "severe tariffs" and other economic penalties.
Tariffs are a signature piece of the president's trade agenda, and Mr. Trump has used the levies as a way to force U.S. trading partners to the table to negotiate trade agreements. The president announced last week higher duties against more than 60 countries ahead of a Friday deadline for them to cut trade deals with his administration. Those tariffs are set to take effect this week.
The U.S. had a $45.8 billion trade deficit with India last year, an increase of 5.9% over 2023, according to data from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
Mr. Trump met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House earlier this year and said that the U.S. would be boosting military sales to India. He also said he and Modi reached a deal on oil and gas that would make the U.S. India's leading supplier.
Indian companies supplied 47% of all generic prescriptions filed in the US. Furthermore, Indian companies supply a substantial proportion of drugs to U.S. residents, with four out of ten prescriptions filled in the U.S. being supplied by Indian companies.
Curry? Wake the hell up man.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
A quick recap. Trump places a 25% additional tariff on India supposedly for buying Russian oil. He said that he would punish nations that purchased Russian oil. So far he kept his word in terms of India. Yet China buys even more Russian oil than India and he placed no additional tariff on China. Is the message finally starting to sink in that if he hits China too hard with tariffs inflation here would go through the roof quickly?.............................
Russia's Wartime Fossil Fuel Trade Dominated by Asian Buyers
China followed by India have been the two biggest wartime buyers of Russian fossil fuels, here defined as any oil, coal or gas purchased after Jan. 1, 2023.
A quick recap. Trump places a 25% additional tariff on India supposedly for buying Russian oil. He said that he would punish nations that purchased Russian oil. So far he kept his word in terms of India. Yet China buys even more Russian oil than India and he placed no additional tariff on China. Is the message finally starting to sink in that if he hits China too hard with tariffs inflation here would go through the roof quickly?.............................
Russia's Wartime Fossil Fuel Trade Dominated by Asian Buyers
China followed by India have been the two biggest wartime buyers of Russian fossil fuels, here defined as any oil, coal or gas purchased after Jan. 1, 2023.
And when looking at the chart, it's not even close. China consumes far more Russian oil than India.
There's too many double standard and so much hypocricy it's not really worth raising every time something he says or does is whackadoodle. . . . But since we are here - Qatar sponsors Hamas. But it's cool to go and do deals and accept a jumbo jet from them because they played to his ego and pandered to him. . . .
The more things change the more they stay the same.
Japan made a 500 billion dollar investment? No, no they did not. trump, lied again......
Japan Expects 1%-2% of $550 Billion US Fund to Be Investment
(Bloomberg) -- Japan expects only 1% to 2% of its recently agreed upon $550 billion US fund to be deployed as investment, with loans making up the bulk of the rest, according to the nation’s top chief negotiator Ryosei Akazawa.
Meanwhile, Tokyo stands to save roughly ¥10 trillion ($68 billion) through lower tariff rates in its deal with the US, Akazawa told public broadcaster NHK on Saturday.
The details revealed by Akazawa suggest the Japanese may end up giving up much less than at first glance.
The $550 billion investment framework combines investments, loans and loan guarantees provided by financial institutions backed by the Japanese government, Akazawa said. Of the total, investment will comprise 1% or 2% and the US and Japan will split the profits of that investment at a ratio of 90-10, he said. Japan had originally proposed a 50-50 ratio, he added.
The fund is a centerpiece of the deal announced by the two sides that will impose 15% tariffs on Japanese cars and other goods. Officials from Japan and other countries that struck deals with the US are now sifting through the terms to explain them to the public.
“It’s not that $550 billion in cash will be sent to the US,” Akazawa said. “By letting the US have 90% of the profits rather than 50%, I think Japan’s loss will be at most a couple of tens of billions of yen. People are saying various things, such as ‘You sold out Japan,’ but they’re wrong.”
For the loans provided through the program, Japan will collect interest payments; and for loan guarantees, if nothing happens Japan will collect fees, Akazawa said. “For that part, Japan’s just making money,” he said.
Akazawa also clarified that the investment program won’t be only supporting Japanese and US firms. As a potential example, he cited a Taiwanese semiconductor firm building a factory in the US.
“We’d like to put the $550 billion in place during President Trump’s term,” Akazawa added.
The Japan side has cited JBIC and NEXI as the government-backed organizations that will be leading financing for the projects. For JBIC, in the year ended March, around 77% of its assets were in loans, and 6.6% in loan guarantees.
Further details of the implementation of the US-Japan deal remain unclear, including when the new tariff rates will take effect and when the new investment vehicle will kick off. There’s been no joint document signed by both sides for the deal, although the White House has published a fact sheet.
“If you say something like, ‘Let’s create a joint document,’ they will say, ‘We’ll lower tariffs after the document is created,’” Akazawa said. In order to not lose time, “we will demand that they issue an executive order to lower tariffs as soon as possible, regardless of a document.”
Last week, Akazawa said he expects universal tariffs on Japan’s shipments to be lowered to 15% on Aug. 1. He said he wanted the car tariffs to be cut to 15% as soon as possible, without specifying a date.
The Trump administration has touted the deal with Japan as a potential model for others. On Sunday, the US and European Union agreed on a deal that will see the bloc face 15% tariffs on most of its exports with the EU pledging to invest $600 billion in the US.
That is a significant issue. Unfortunately, I think the name of the game today is just to get the headline out there to have people believe it initially.
Marketing has always been his forte. Substance and delivery have not.
Blue ostriches on crack float on milkshakes between the sidewalk titans of gurglefitz. --YTown
That is a significant issue. Unfortunately, I think the name of the game today is just to get the headline out there to have people believe it initially.
Marketing has always been his forte. Substance and delivery have not.
The immovable deadline on tariffs was supposed to be in July. Then the immovable deadline was moved to August 1st. Then some of the immovable deadline was extended a little further for some countries. Then trump came out and said tariffs would be raised on nations that were buying oil from Russia. As such he promptly acted on that by raising tariffs on India for buying Russian oil.
Now? The largest consumer and purchaser of Russian oil is China. So what's going on with China?...............
Trump signs order granting another 90-day extension on harshest China tariffs
He knows the disaster that will occur on the U.S economy if he fully implements the tariffs he has threatened on China. Even the tariffs on most other countries have really just kicked in less than two weeks ago. China has called his bluff and he is backtracking. No wonder his casinos went bankrupt. He folds pretty easily when a top ranked player calls his bluff.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
And to top that of they were suggesting they would change the monthly jobs report to quarterly reports. It appears they have backed off on that. At least for now......................
Trump’s pick for BLS commissioner floated suspending the monthly jobs report before apparently backing off
E.J. Antoni, President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics, is no longer considering suspending the monthly jobs report — one of the most crucial and historic measurements of US economic activity — after proposing the unprecedented action during an interview that published Tuesday.
Antoni will continue to publish monthly jobs numbers if confirmed, Heritage Foundation economist Stephen Moore told CNN Tuesday. Moore said he discussed the issue with Antoni, who has since backed off the notion.
Antoni had previously told Fox News Digital that the monthly jobs report should be suspended in favor of quarterly data, claiming the report is unreliable and frequently revised.
In an interview with Fox News Digital that was published Tuesday but took place August 4, a week before his nomination, Antoni said the BLS should publish only quarterly data until BLS can ensure its monthly jobs data is more accurate.
“Until it is corrected, the BLS should suspend issuing the monthly job reports but keep publishing the more accurate, though less timely, quarterly data,” he told Fox. “Major decision-makers from Wall Street to D.C. rely on these numbers, and a lack of confidence in the data has far-reaching consequences.”
Moore, who recommended Antoni for the BLS commissioner role, told CNN’s Danny Freeman on Tuesday that the nominee changed his mind.
“I think it’s a bad idea to do that. In fact I’ve talked to EJ about it and he’s not going to do that. We need monthly numbers,” Moore said. “Now what he’s talking about is we do a quarterly number that’s much more accurate than the monthly one and he’s saying maybe — but he’s backed off that. We’re going to continue to do monthly numbers.”
There's much more to the article at the link. But the parts in bold show who is now in control of helping pick the people running our government. The Heritage Foundation. The authors of Project 2025.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
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