'It's very much what they tried to do with me': Trump surprised by Brazilian Supreme Court's condemnation of Bolsonaro
"It's very surprising that this happened. It's very similar to what they tried to do with me, but they didn't get away with it," President Donald Trump said.
President Donald Trump at the Kennedy Center (Archive)/ Mandel Ngan
President Donald Trump expressed surprise on Thursday at Brazil's Supreme Court's decision in finding ex-president Jair Bolsonaro guilty of allegedly attempting a coup d'état.
Speaking to reporters on the White House lawn, Trump expressed surprise at the ruling that leaves Bolsonaro with a sentence of more than 27 years in prison. "I watched the trial, I know him very well. As a foreign leader, I thought he was a good president. It is very surprising that this could happen. It's very much what they tried to do with me, but they didn't get away with it at all. He was a good man, and I don't see that happening," the Republican leader said.
ALGUÉM PERGUNTOU? Donald Trump disse que assistiu ao julgamento de Jair Bolsonaro e disse estar surpreso e descontente com a decisão do STF.
— POPTime (@siteptbr) September 11, 2025
pic.twitter.com/GVE66h7xd6
Trump previously called the judicial process a "witch hunt" and compared it to his own legal challenges. In that vein, a few weeks ago, the Trump administration applied tariffs of 50% on Brazilian imports, a measure that the president explicitly linked to the lawsuit against Bolsonaro, describing it as a political persecution.
In addition, the Department of the Treasury, under the hand of Scott Bessent, imposed sanctions against the assets of Judge Alexandre de Moraes, who presided over the case.
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Bolsonaro convicted for allegedly pushing for a coup
In an early session on Thursday (which had been scheduled for Friday), four of five judges found him guilty on five charges, including coup plotting, armed criminal organization, and violent acts against institutions during the Jan. 8, 2023, assault.
The prosecution pointed to a plot to assassinate Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Geraldo Alckmin, and Judge Alexandre de Moraes.
Flávio Bolsonaro, son of the former president, rejected the ruling, vowing to fight "until the end."
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