Brazil’s Flávio Bolsonaro in Washington as his bid for presidency is shaken by scandal

SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazilian Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro arrived in Washington on Tuesday to tout his family’s connection with U.S. President Donald Trump once again and got renewed hope to shore up his weakening presidential bid after he received millions of dollars from a disgraced banker.

Sen. Bolsonaro did not have a public agenda but requested three days in the U.S. from the Brazilian Senate as doubts on his candidacy mounted. Then Trump met with him, according to a White House official speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the conversation. The encounter did not appear on Trump’s public schedule.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, his rival in October’s elections, had a three-hour meeting with Trump on May 7. The 80-year-old leader seeks a fourth, nonconsecutive term.

The son of former President Jair Bolsonaro has been under fire since May 13, when messages leaked by The Intercept from a federal police investigation showed he received about $12 million USD from Daniel Vorcaro, former owner of the shuttered Banco Master.

Vorcaro is accused of defrauding bank customers out of hundreds of millions of dollars after he convinced them to make shady investments. Brazil’s federal police estimate the bank’s total fraud at 12 billion reais ($2.3 billion).

Flávio Bolsonaro has denied any wrongdoing and asserts that Vorcaro’s money was used to produce a movie about his father’s life. The investigation continues.

The Trump administration has not commented publicly on the Bolsonaro scandal.

On Tuesday the Brazilian senator tried to overshadow the allegations.

He posted photos of himself, his brother and lawmaker Eduardo Bolsonaro and influencer Paulo Figueiredo standing next to Trump.

He also made defiant comments in a news conference, claiming he told Trump he wants the U.S. to designate two Brazilian criminal groups — the First Command of the Capital, known as PCC, and the Red Command, or CV — as terrorist organizations, which Lula opposes for being undue interference in Brazilian policy.

“While Lula came to the White House to lobby for drug dealers, I came to do the opposite,” Sen. Bolsonaro told reporters in Washington.

Brazil’s presidency did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press.

Bolsonaro seeks support among politicians, business community

Political opponents have been on the attack since the revelation of the payment.

“Anyone getting close to a criminal banker gives a bad sign,” former Minas Gerais Gov. Romeu Zema, a Jair Bolsonaro supporter who is running for the presidency, said on Monday.

Flávio Bolsonaro’s campaign has been shaken as he searches for a running mate and tries to form party alliances. The latter is key to getting more resources and free air time on TV and radio, which is determined by the number of seats that each party holds in the lower house.

Even before Bolsonaro’s connection to Vorcaro was public, he lacked support from many in the business community.

Former Goias Gov. Ronaldo Caiado and activist Renan Santos, also presidential hopefuls, have raised doubts about Bolsonaro, and some politicians argue that former first lady Michelle Bolsonaro should replace him as presidential candidate.

“Michelle would bring many voters back. She has a good name for herself,” former environment minister and lawmaker Ricardo Salles said in a recent podcast. “She is much softer and that could work.”

Michelle Bolsonaro lives with the former president in Brasilia, where he is under house arrest for his coup attempt conviction. She has remained silent about the link between the senator, who is not her son, and Vorcaro and about making a presidential run.

“That is none of my business. I have to take care of my husband,” she said last week.

An ally says the candidacy is ‘still standing’

Sen. Marcos Rogério, one of Flávio Bolsonaro’s key allies in Congress, said the presidential hopeful given the necessary explanations for what happened between him and Vorcaro.

“Moments like this deserve our attention. He needs to make it all clear. But he has also argued in favor of a congressional inquiry on Banco Master. This thing will not bar his candidacy at all,” Rogério told journalists on Saturday at the Esfera business forum outside Sao Paulo, who said his presidential bid will not be reconsidered.

Political analyst Lula Guimaraes, who has worked for candidates across the political spectrum in Brazilian elections, said at the same forum that the revelations would have been deadly for Bolsonaro if they had come out shortly before the vote.

The police investigations could further hurt his chances, but voters might leave the issue aside when it comes time to cast their ballot, Guimaraes added.

“As of now, people in Brazil want to know who will win the next World Cup. They want to know whether Neymar will play or not. That alone will make this whole affair less visible for a month,” Guimaraes said. “I don’t think this alone will be deadly for Flávio Bolsonaro.”

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