US President Donald Trump on Thursday sharply criticized Brazil’s Supreme Court for sentencing former President Jair Bolsonaro to 27 years and three months in prison for attempting to overturn the country’s 2022 election results. He called the ruling “very surprising” and made vague references to his own legal battles in the United States.“I watched that trial. I know him pretty well — foreign leader. I thought he was a good president of Brazil. And it’s very surprising that that could happen,” Trump told reporters at the White House, while addressing possibility of further sanctions over the sentencing. “That’s very much like they tried to do with me, but they didn’t get away with it at all. But I can always say this: I knew him as president of Brazil. He was a good man, and I don’t see that happening.“Trump went further, saying, “Jair Bolsonaro was an outstanding leader. Now, it’s a terrible thing for Brazil.” He stopped short of confirming whether Washington would impose new penalties on Brazil, saying only that he was “very unhappy” with the verdict.Trump has been openly supportive of Bolsonaro since the early stages of the trial, even going ahead on imposing tariffs on Brazil for the current government’s action against the former president. US earlier this year imposed a 50 per cent tariff on Brazilian goods.Trump had also spoke nagainst the Brazil government and the judiciary over the trial. He sanctioned Brazilian supreme court Justice Alexandre de Moraes in July, alleging a politically motivated trial.The conviction — a historic first for a former Brazilian head of state — followed a trial in which four of five justices found Bolsonaro guilty of five charges, including plotting to abolish the rule of law, belonging to an armed criminal organization, and inciting violence. Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversaw the case, branded Bolsonaro the leader of a “criminal coup plot,” while Justice Cármen Lúcia said evidence showed he “orchestrated every possible move to maintain or seize power.”Bolsonaro, who has denied wrongdoing, remains under house arrest in Brasília and can appeal, though legal experts say such challenges rarely succeed. The court has 60 days to publish its ruling, after which his legal team will have five days to file motions for clarification.The White House response marks an escalation in already tense US-Brazil relations. Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the verdict as a “witch hunt” on X, vowing the administration would “respond accordingly.” Inside Brazil, the ruling has deepened political rifts. Supporters of the far-right leader rallied in major cities, denouncing what they called political persecution. His eldest son, Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, described the decision as “supreme persecution,” insisting that “history would vindicate his father.” President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who defeated Bolsonaro in 2022, defended the verdict, saying “hundreds of pieces of evidence” proved that Bolsonaro attempted a coup against Brazil’s democracy. Bolsonaro, already barred from holding office until 2030 in a separate case, is expected to remain a powerful political figure. Observers say he will likely back an ally to challenge Lula in Brazil’s next election, even as the country navigates the turbulence of his conviction and the prospect of international fallout.
