Juan Pablo Spinetto, Columnist

Brazil’s Lula Just Got a Huge Gift From the White House

Trump’s brash intervention in Brazil’s domestic politics on behalf of his ally former president Jair Bolsonaro will just help his successor.

July 10, 2025 at 9:30 AM UTC

By Juan Pablo Spinetto

JP Spinetto is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering Latin American business, economic affairs and politics. He was previously Bloomberg News’ managing editor for economics and government in the region.

Keep those Truth Social posts coming, President Trump!
Photographer: Pablo Porciuncula/AFP/Getty Images

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It was only a matter of time: After largely ignoring Brazil during his first six months in office, US President Donald Trump has finally erupted into the country’s combustive politics.

Trump on Wednesday announced a 50% tariff on Brazilian goods starting Aug. 1st, linking it to the legal troubles of his friend and conservative ally Jair Bolsonaro by saying the higher levies were “due in part to Brazil’s insidious attacks on Free Elections.”