Image by Renato Gizzi via Flickr
RT America on Aug 31, 2016
After a nine-month impeachment process, the Brazilian parliament voted 61-20 to impeach Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff and remove her from office. University of Rio de Janeiro Professor Maria Luisa Mendonca tells RT America’s Anya Parampil that the lawmakers’ vote was a “parliamentary coup” and that there was “no legal basis for impeachment.”
***
Glenn Greenwald: Rousseff Impeachment Trial Marks Complete Reversal of Democracy
Democracy Now! on Aug 29, 2016
http://democracynow.org – Embattled Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff is slated to testify today at her impeachment trial—a trial that many are calling a coup by her right-wing political rivals. Rousseff has denounced the proceedings and called for early elections to unite the country. Rousseff’s impeachment stems from accusations she tampered with government accounts to hide a budget deficit. She was suspended earlier this year and has maintained her innocence, accusing her political opponents of spearheading the proceedings to shield themselves from prosecution and undo years of progressive policies. The Brazilian group Transparency Brazil says 60 percent of Brazilian lawmakers are currently under criminal investigation or have already been convicted of crimes ranging from corruption to election fraud. Rousseff’s opponents now need 54 votes, or two-thirds of the 81-seat Senate, to convict her of violating budget laws. Her impeachment would end 13 years of left-wing Workers’ Party rule in Brazil and bring to power interim President Michel Temer for the remaining two years of Rousseff’s term. Temer is also deeply unpopular and currently under investigation himself, accused of receiving illegal campaign contributions linked to the state oil company Petrobras.
***
Dilma Rousseff on Ouster: This is a Coup That Will Impact Every Democratic Organization in Brazil
Democracy Now! on Sep 1, 2016
http://democracynow.org – The Brazilian Senate has voted to impeach the country’s democratically elected President Dilma Rousseff from office in what many are calling a coup. The vote was 61 to 20. Rousseff denounced the decision, saying there’s no constitutional justification for her impeachment. In an unexpected twist, the senators voted 42 to 36 to allow Rousseff to maintain her political rights, meaning she can continue to stand in elections and hold public office in the future. Irate opposition senators vowed “to appeal to the Supreme Court” to reverse the decision. Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment ends 13 years of rule by the Workers’ Party in Brazil and brings to power President Michel Temer for the remaining two years of Rousseff’s term. Temer is deeply unpopular and currently under investigation himself, accused of receiving illegal campaign contributions linked to the state oil company Petrobras. We speak to James Green, professor of Brazilian history and culture at Brown University. He is the director of Brown’s Brazil Initiative. Green is the author of several books, including “We Cannot Remain Silent: Opposition to the Brazilian Military Dictatorship in the United States.”
***
President Dilma Rousseff Impeached, New Government to Pursue Right-Wing Agenda
TheRealNews on Aug 31, 2016
This is a moment of triumph for those who used the government to shield themselves from very serious corruption charges, revealing the failure of Brazil’s so-called democratic institutions, says Harvard University professor Sidney Chalhoub.
***
Thousands March Against Brazilian Coup
teleSUR English on Sep 1, 2016
The Brazilian people continue to fight for democracy! Even in the face of strong police crackdowns, thousands across the country took to the streets to denounce coup-imposed President Michel Temer and the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff.
from the archives:
The Stimulator: How to Paralyze a Country
Dandelion Salad 
Pingback: Chris Hedges: Latin America Under Assault From International Bankers, Corporations and the CIA | Dandelion Salad
Biophobic witch-hunting is the familiar playbook and fail-safe default of all misogynist patriarchs, thieves and bigots.
This is precisely why we need independent, separate international courts, something the CIA and its decorated surrogates do everything in their deep-state power to resist by all means.
This blatant abuse is in consistent lock-step with the TPP/ISDS illegal agenda, all part and parcel of a criminal juggernaut of corporate gangsterism fueled by ecocidal profits.
Nothing will change, until there is a coordinated global movement, a total rejection of this ignominious, corrupt ‘planetary’ status quo; not only by protesting citizens, but by the most renowned and proficient members of the world’s (ecologically minded) intelligentsia, including artists, indigenous representatives, literary figures, highly qualified and respected professionals, spiritual advocates, scientists and vigilant defenders of women’s rights everywhere.
David, you’re so right! The last paragraph is the genuine “formula” for real progressive change for making this planet a better place for all living beings and Mother Nature.
THANKS!
Frank! So good to hear from you again. Hope you’ve been well. You were missed greatly.
Thanks, Lo! Yeah, I’m alright. Still hangin’ in there, madder than ever.
Haha. Great to hear, Frank.
Hi Frank! generous spirited as always, what you been up to, writing/researching? thanks for the message of solidarity ~ time for a consensus-coalition of the righteous!
A decade on from Paul Hawken’s excellent wake-up call, his international ‘blessed unrest’ is surely by now, an even more formidable constituency ~ so what is hindering ‘us/it’ from gaining legitimate representation, full political recognition?
Somehow G20 Chimerican gesturing hasn’t exactly persuaded me yet we’re anywhere close to a rational program…a realistic vision that encompasses all our planetary horizons.
Hi David! Yes, I’ve been writing, researching, and tending to family matters, mostly. They take up most of my waking hours.
Yes, I remember Paul Hawken’s excellent wake-up call, which was muffled by the capitalist greed masters.
I agree with you on the G20 Chimerican gesturing. It’s that type of organization that makes things worse in the world instead of better.
Meanwhile natural resources and MUCH-NEEDED money for social programs for the common good of mankind, the animal kingdom, and Mother Earth are wasted around the globe in producing armaments for endless warfare and and enriching the capitalist class with their insatiable desire for more.
I love Mike Whitney and have been reading his articles for a number of years. Like you, David, a compassionate man and a Thinker!
Check out: http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/09/02/can-we-please-get-rid-of-the-pledge/
In solidarity,
Hi David. I answered your post but it’s not showing as of yet. ???
Frank, your comment had a link in it, so it went to the moderation folder. It’s approved now and should be showing up.
Hear, hear.