Corruption and socialism go hand in hand…Brazil is no exception!

Here’s the backstory on the corrupt Brazillian President and how she drained the coffers. It hasn’t helped that the lower oil prices have devastated Brazil’s economy:

The impeachment of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff is about more than cooking the books to hide election-year spending or looting the state-owned oil company for her campaigns and cronies. What’s really on trial are Rousseff’s socialist policies.

Those policies drove up deficits to win votes, bet too heavily on exports to China and not only failed to retool the world’s ninth-largest economy to compete in the world but drove it into a recession.

dilma

Rousseff was first elected in 2010 on the coattails of her mentor Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva — a leftist labor leader who exceeded expectations as president from 2003-2011. Da Silva benefited from the windfall of revenue from exports of oil, natural gas, minerals and agriculture goods — which convinced him that his bloated anti-poverty programs were sustainable.

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Unfortunately, both da Silva and Rousseff ignored the dire need to improve education, reform tangled tax codes, fix stifling labor laws, invest in infrastructure or make it easier to create or operate a business. Read more: NYP

FAST FORWARD TO TODAY:

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — The acting governor of Rio de Janeiro state has declared a state of financial disaster so he has more leeway to manage the state’s scarce resources less than two months Brazil hosts the Olympic Games.

Francisco Dornelles announced the decision on Friday. It will allow Rio’s state government to change its budgetary priorities without disrespecting Brazil’s fiscal laws.

(AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)
(AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File)

The move will let Dornelles adopt exceptional measures to pay costs related to the Games as the state grapples with the country’s economic recession.

The 2016 Summer Olympic Games will be held in Rio de Janeiro on Aug. 5-21.

Dornelles’ office said in a statement that the decision was made because a dip in revenues from taxes and oil royalties was “stopping the state of Rio de Janeiro from honoring its commitment to the organization of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.”

“The financial crisis has brought several difficulties in essential public services and it could cause the total collapse of public security, health care, education, urban mobility and environmental management,” the statement said.

Rio’s state government is in such dire straits that two of its hospitals were taken over by the Rio de Janeiro city government to allow doctors to keep receiving their paychecks. Some police stations are so underfunded that they have asked neighbors to donate basic items like toilet paper. Public workers and retirees have suffered months-long delays in receiving their money.

Read more: Yahoo News

 

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