Jan 24, 2019

Davos welcomes Brazil's Bolsonaro with open arms

Davos welcomes Brazil's Bolsonaro with open arms. Photo: Alan Santos/PR via Flickr

Strikingly, Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has been this year's foremost addition to the World Economic Forum's loftiest circles.

The big picture: There has so far been little worry about his fondness for dictatorship, his plans to ravage the environment or threats to jail or exile political adversaries.

Why it matters: Davos is a small town, where plutocrats and heads of state eddy around each other, each with their own gravitational attraction. Look to the very center of attention and fascination, and you will very frequently find a strongman president.

In prior years, both Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Trump have been feted by WEF head Klaus Schwab. This year belonged to Bolsonaro.
Bolsonaro was seated at Schwab's top table on Tuesday, along with Tim Cook and Satya Nadella, the CEOs of two of the most valuable companies on the planet.
Bolsonaro's Flickr feed is full of photo-ops with the likes of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair. If Bolsonaro was at all concerned that his far-right rhetoric would make him a persona non grata in Davos, his first day in town will have put all such worries to rest.
Bolsonaro also gave a high-profile speech to the Davos crowd. Schwab introduced him by gushing that "Brazil is going, and will go, through a period of decisive transformation under your leadership."

The bottom line: The WEF might be a high-minded nonprofit, but it runs on money and power, both of which are fundamentally amoral. After the Davos globalists embraced Trump in 2018, it comes as no surprise to see them doing the same with Bolsonaro.

Go deeper: Arrival of Brazil's Bolsonaro draws praise from Trump, fear from critics

Go deeper

Axios

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Global: Total confirmed cases as of 3:30 a.m. ET: 1,203,923 — Total deaths: 64,795 — Total recoveries: 247,273 — Map.
U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 3:30 a.m. ET: 312,237 — Total deaths: 8,502 — Total recoveries: 14,997 — Map.
Public health latest: CDC launches national trackers and recommends face coverings in public. Federal government will cover costs of COVID-19 treatment for uninsured. The virus is hitting poor, minority communities harder and upending childbirth.
2020 latest: "We have no contingency plan," Trump said on the 2020 Republican National Convention. "We're having the convention at the end of August."
Business updates: Restaurants step up for health care workers. Employees are pressuring companies to provide protections during coronavirus.
Oil latest: Monday meeting among oil-producing countries to discuss supply curbs is reportedly being delayed amid tensions between Saudi Arabia and Russia.
Education update: Many college-age students won't get coronavirus relief checks.
1 🏀 thing: The WNBA postpones start of training camps and season.
What should I do? Pets, moving and personal health. Answers about the virus from Axios experts — What to know about social distancing — Q&A: Minimizing your coronavirus risk.
Other resources: CDC on how to avoid the virus, what to do if you get it.

Subscribe to Mike Allen's Axios AM to follow our coronavirus coverage each morning from your inbox.

Keep ReadingUpdated 11 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Axios

World coronavirus updates: Confirmed cases top 1.2 million

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins, the CDC and China's Health Ministry. Note: China numbers are for the mainland only and U.S. numbers include repatriated citizens and confirmed plus presumptive cases from the CDC

The number of novel coronavirus cases surpassed 1.2 million worldwide Saturday night, as Spain overtook Italy as the country with the most infections outside the U.S.

The big picture: About half the planet's population is now on lockdown and the global death toll was nearing 64,800, by Sunday morning, per Johns Hopkins data.

Go deeperUpdated 52 mins ago - Health

Rebecca Falconer, Orion Rummler, Marisa Fernandez

U.S. coronavirus updates: Death toll surpasses 8,500

Data: The Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins; Map: Andrew Witherspoon/Axios

Recorded deaths from the novel coronavirus surpassed 8,500 in the U.S. early Sunday, per Johns Hopkins data. The death toll in the U.S. has risen over 1,000 every day for the past four days, since April 1.

The big picture: President Trump said Saturday America's is facing its "toughest" time "between this week and next week." Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said U.S. deaths are expected to continue to rise during this period.

Go deeperUpdated 1 hour ago - Health