Brazil’s Rousseff undone by hubris, economic missteps, (2016)

“…stubbornness, economic mismanagement and a tendency toward self-isolation… led her to rebuff advice that might have averted recession and saved her politically.

Reuters > World, Tuesday 10 May 2016
Brad Brooks and Paulo Prada

Minutes after taking her oath of office in 2011, President Dilma Rousseff stood before Congress and pledged to end the dirty back-room deals and kickback schemes at the heart of Brazilian politics.

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For a time, it seemed she would make good on her promise. In her first year, she forced out seven cabinet ministers tainted by accusations of wrongdoing and had the highest approval rating of any president since Brazil’s return to democracy in 1985.

Yet five years on, amid the worst recession since the 1930s, Rousseff will be stripped of office if the Senate, as expected, votes on Wednesday to put her on trial for breaking budgetary laws.

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In explaining what went wrong, former ministers, aides and congressmen point to Rousseff’s stubbornness, economic mismanagement and a tendency toward self-isolation. Combined, those traits led her to rebuff advice that might have averted recession and saved her politically.

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“She really thought she could will the economy back into shape,” said a former aide…

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“Instead of seeking dialogue and agreement, she opted for confrontation,” said another former minister.

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