Former President Trump shared his endorsement for Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s reelection amid backlash in Brazil over Bolsonaro’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“President Jair Bolsonaro and I have become great friends over the past few years. He fights hard for, and loves, the people of Brazil—Just like I do for the people of the United States,” Trump said in his statement Tuesday.
“Brazil is lucky to have a man such as Jair Bolsonaro working for them,” Trump added. “He is a great President and will never let the people of his great country down!”
Trump’s endorsement came as a Brazilian Senate committee recommended that Bolsonaro face criminal charges over his response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has killed hundreds of thousands of people in the country.
A congressional committee report obtained by The New York Times found that Bolsonaro pushed unproven COVID-19 treatments and ignored communications with vaccine manufacturers such as Pfizer.
In an interview with a Brazilian radio station, Bolsonaro fired back at the report, calling the charges “fantasies.”
“I am not going to discuss these people’s fantasies. I am not going to discuss this load of stupidity,” Bolsonaro told the radio station.