A Bipartisan Congressional Panel Gets Burned By Partisan Fury

The Republican co-chair, Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey, proposed holding the hearing earlier this month, billing it as exploring “democracy, freedom and the rule of law in Brazil,” according to a draft announcement I obtained. “This is happening because the GOP no longer believes in democracy and wants to normalize far-right political violence,” McGovern said in a statement to me, noting that “those who attacked the Brazilian Congress were inspired by Trump’s insurrection.” His team also was upset that social media posts about the hearing appeared online before McGovern had made a decision on it, suggesting that the GOP side had leaked information about the event in violation of commission procedures. In its proposal, Smith’s side of the commission said the hearing would explore “serious human rights violations committed by Brazilian officials on a large scale, including judicial malfeasance; the political abuse of legal procedures to persecute political opposition; violations of freedom of speech; and muzzling opposition media,” according to the draft announcement. McGovern’s aides said they initially told Republicans that the description of the hearing and the proposed witnesses showed that the goal was to allow Bolsonaro allies to vent anger against Brazil’s government. “It’s unfortunate that Co-Chair Jim McGovern is uncomfortable discussing the human rights situation in Brazil, especially under Lula’s reign of terror,” said Smith, who took over as GOP co-chair in 2019.