Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the United States “must stop granting refuge” to former Brazilian leader Jair Bolsonaro, after his supporters stormed major government buildings on Sunday in scenes reminiscent of the US Capitol riots on Jan. 6. two years ago.
The hundreds of protesters who invaded the Congress building, the Supreme Court and the Presidential Palace of the Planalto in the capital Brasilia over the weekend “will be found and punished”, according to Brazil’s new president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Ocasio-Cortez condemned the events on Sunday and said he was in solidarity with the Lula da Silva government.
“Almost two years to the day the United States Capitol was attacked by fascists, we see fascist movements abroad trying to do the same in Brazil,” the New York Democrat said. tweeted Sunday.
“We must stand in solidarity with the democratically elected government of @LulaOficial.
“The United States must stop granting Bolsonaro refuge in Florida,” he added.
Lula da Silva returned to power and took office after he defeated Bolsonaro in a runoff election on October 30, after a 12-year hiatus.
Bolsonaro denounced the actions of his supporters and his office previously said he was cooperating with the transition of power, but the far-right leader stopped short of explicitly admitting his electoral defeat and left the country for the US ahead of the takeover. possession of Lula da Silva. .
Some context: Brazilian officials and world leaders also criticized the protesters’ actions, evoking January 6, 2021, when rioters stormed the US Capitol in an effort to prevent certification of the 2020 election and President Joe Biden’s victory over former President Donald Trump.
US President Biden on Sunday condemned “the assault on democracy and the peaceful transfer of power in Brazil.”
“Brazil’s democratic institutions have our full support and the will of the Brazilian people must not be undermined,” Biden tweeted. He added that she hoped to work with Lula da Silva.
