If Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff thought it was tough imposing austerity measures in the first half of the year, she may be in for some unpleasant surprises in the second.
She has lost support from Senate Chief Renan Calheiros and his lower-house counterpart, Eduardo Cunha, amid growing discontent with a recession and a corruption probe into legislators. Calheiros, who likened Brazil’s atmosphere to a horror movie with no end in sight, and Cunha are pushing for inquiries into alleged wrongdoing at federal institutions and have delayed votes on key bills designed to raise revenue.
While Cunha’s Democratic Movement party, the largest in the ruling alliance, hasn’t followed his lead by abandoning the government, many of its legislators want to distance themselves from Rousseff’s unpopular austerity measures, said political analyst Gabriel Petrus. Lawmakers may step up dissent as prosecutors intensify probes into more than 50 politicians on allegations of graft.
Brazil Energy Insight 
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