Under pressure from the Senate, President Lula (PT) is expected to hold a series of talks in the coming days to decide who to nominate to Luis Roberto Barroso’s STF (Supreme Federal Court) seat.
Aides to the PT members say he has maintained his decision to nominate the coalition’s attorney general, Jorge Mesias, but there is a move in the Senate to elect former House Speaker Rodrigo Pacheco (PSD-MG). It will be up to senators to approve Lula’s nominee’s name after the hearing.
The favorite of parliamentarians now has Davi Alcolumbre (Federal Republic of Brazil, Associated Press), the speaker of the House of Representatives, as its main guarantor, who is now one of Lula’s main allies in Congress.
Alcolumbre was with PT members in late October before the president’s trip to Asia. The Chief Executive was expected to announce the Messiah’s name after the meeting, but the decision was made to postpone it. At the meeting, the Senate President noted Pacheco’s support and warned PT members that it would be difficult to approve Messias’ name in the House of Representatives.
There are fears among senators that after Messias’ appointment to the STF, he will become “the new Flavio Dino,” after the Supreme Court justice who irritated lawmakers by launching a campaign to increase transparency in the implementation of parliamentary amendments.
Without the support of Mr. Alcolumbre and Mr. Pacheco, the center’s leader said it was unlikely that Messias’ name would be approved by the Senate, recalling the not-so-comfortable 47-31 court approval score for Mr. Dino’s name.
Allies said Mr. Pacheco had already been informed by Mr. Lula’s envoy that he would be contacted by the president of the republic in the coming days. Initially, the two sides were scheduled to have a conversation when PT members returned from an official visit from Asia, but this did not happen due to the security crisis stemming from the large-scale operation in Rio de Janeiro.
Now, it was up to Government Leader Jack Wagner (PT-BA) in the Senate to pass on the message to Pacheco to call Lula this Wednesday morning (12th). The previous day, Mr. Jacques met with PT members at the Palacio da Alvorada to discuss, among other things, nominations to the STF.
Jacques told his interlocutors that he believes Lula remains confident in Messias’ nomination and believes it is important that these conversations take place, even if it is just a gesture from PT members to the parties involved. Mr. Lula has made no secret of the fact that he is close to Mr. Pacheco and hopes that he will run for the Minas Gerais state government next year.
Lula’s aides also point out that the STF could field up to four candidates if the president is re-elected, and that the project will rely on a strong candidacy in Minas.
The president has already made his decision long ago, but some allies see a possible withdrawal given the resistance to the Messiah name and the delay in making a formal selection.
People who frequently interact with Lula say rejecting the Messiah’s name on the eve of elections would be a huge burden for PT members.
Moreover, he said that Alcolumbre is an important ally of Palacio do Planalto in Congress, at a time when government distrust is growing against Chamber of Commerce President Hugo Motta (R, PB), thus advocating prudence to avoid displeasing the senators.
The president’s allies also say he should seek out TCU minister Bruno Dantas, another name mentioned for the position, and a Supreme Court minister. According to a PT member’s assistant, PT members discussed the topic with Dino before heading to Belem to take part in the UN’s COP30 (climate change conference).
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