Democratic Reps Say Brazil’s Bolsonaro Should Be Kicked Out Of Florida

Democratic lawmakers called on President Joe Biden to extradite former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro back to his country from Florida following the ugly scenes in Brasilia that echoed the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said the U.S. should not allow Bolsonaro to stay after thousands of Bolsonaro supporters on Sunday attacked key government buildings in Brazil’s capital, including Congress and the Supreme Court. The rioters demanded that Bolsonaro be reinstalled president or that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva be removed from office despite his win in October’s general election.

“He basically used the Trump playbook to inspire domestic terrorists to try to take over the government,” Castro told CNN.

Bolsonaro, who never acknowledged defeat, has been living in a rented home near Disney World in Orlando, Florida, since December, according to The New York Times. He did not attend Lula’s inauguration last week, mirroring the 2021 behavior of former President Donald Trump, who skipped Biden’s inaugural ceremony.

Former Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro, center, meets with supporters outside a vacation home where he is staying near Orlando, Florida., on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023.

Skyler Swisher/Orlando Sentinel via Associated Press

“He basically used the Trump playbook to inspire domestic terrorists to try to take over the government,” Castro told CNN.

Castro continued: “He’s actually very close to Donald Trump. He should be extradited to Brazil. In fact, it was reported that he was under investigation for corruption and fled Brazil to the United States.”

While Republicans are trying to stoke fear over asylum seekers crossing into the U.S., Bolsonaro is on U.S. soil close to Trump, Castro pointed out.

Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) echoed Castro, writing that the U.S. should stand by Lula and “cease granting refuge to Bolsonaro in Florida.”

Biden denounced the attack on Brazilian democracy, but he made no reference to Bolsonaro’s status in Florida.

“Brazil’s democratic institutions have our full support and the will of the Brazilian people must not be undermined,” Biden wrote.

Bolsonaro addressed Brazil’s violence on Twitter, denying that he was in any way responsible.