The Trump-dominated GOP models how a violent effort to overturn an election—even if unsuccessful—can become a political asset.
By Oliver Stuenkel, an associate professor of international relations at the Getulio Vargas Foundation in São Paulo.
As millions of Brazilians watched the live images of the U.S. Capitol insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, in disbelief, many commentators in the United States and Brazil were quick to agree that then-U.S. President Donald Trump had overplayed his hand. They believed the attack—which failed to accomplish its objective of obstructing a democratic transition of power—would damage the outgoing president’s political fortunes and complicate the U.S. Republican Party’s future.
One year later, however, the way Brazilians interpret that day and its meaning has changed as the Republican Party—which failed to condemn Trump and now propagates an increasingly revisionist narrative about the Jan. 6 events—looks set to take back control of the U.S. Congress in November’s midterm elections…
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