Cecilia Tornaghi on Rear Vision: Brazil s President Jair Bolsonaro It seems that he was able to gather this image of being the outsider, said the
Americas Quarterly managing editor.
Cecilia Tornaghi, managing editor of
Americas Quarterly, spoke to Keri Phillips on ABC Radio National s Rear Vision podcast about Brazil s President Jair Bolsonaro. Tornaghi explained that Bolsonaro is from the poorest part of São Paulo, and he grew up in a low-income family during the military dictatorship. She said that military service is mandatory for boys in Brazil, and at 18, Bolsonaro went to a prestigious military academy. The military always offered this sort of path into a stable life. But he actually wanted to serve, said Tornaghi. The reports I’ve read about [Bolsonaro], and interviews is that he had this idea of going into politics. But nobody knew about that at that time…there was no indication that he could ever reach as far as he did. said Tornaghi.