Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Brazil's former president sees politics in Silva conviction
Mauricio Savarese, Associated Press
Updated 5:13 pm, Friday, July 14, 2017
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said Friday that the corruption conviction of her mentor and predecessor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is aimed at keeping him out of next year's presidential election.
In an interview with The Associated Press in Rio de Janeiro, Rousseff said no candidate allied with President Michel Temer has the votes to beat Silva, universally known as Lula.
"The 2018 elections are an enigma. They do not have a candidate to compete against Lula," Rousseff said. "You can't know what the result will be, but they know people noticed they had meaningful gains when he was in office. They want to stop Lula from being eligible."
Rousseff was impeached last year for manipulating the fiscal budget and was succeeded by Temer. Silva was found guilty of corruption earlier this week and sentenced to nearly 10 years in prison, although he remains free while an appeal is heard.
More:
http://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/Brazil-s-former-president-sees-politics-in-Silva-11289952.php
