The launching of impeachment proceedings Wednesday against Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff ends lengthy behind-the-scenes intrigue, but even now the complex legal process could take months, with the outcome far from certain.
A: The opposition says Rousseff fiddled government accounts in 2014 to mask budget holes during her reelection campaign. She is accused of breaking the law by taking unauthorized loans from state banks to cover government spending and also continuing this practice in 2015 at the start of her second term.
The nation's accounting court, known as the TCU, gave the opposition significant ammunition in October by recommending that Congress reject the 2014 government accounts. However, it remains unclear whether Rousseff can be held personally culpable.
A: First the speaker of the lower house had to accept one of the pending impeachment petitions.
Now that that's happened, the lower house of Congress will form a commission which votes within 15 days on whether to continue the impeachment proceedings.
The commission's recommendation would then go to the full house where two-thirds of deputies -- 342 out of 513 -- are required for impeachment to be upheld.
At this point Rousseff would be suspended and the matter would go to the Senate for trial.
The upper house, overseen by the president of the Supreme Court, then votes, with a two thirds (54 of 81) majority needed to force Rousseff from office.
A: On paper, Rousseff's ruling coalition, with 314 deputies, would easily defeat impeachment.
But with the country in economic crisis and Congress deeply split over Rousseff's performance, she cannot take that support for granted. With only 10 percent approval ratings, Rousseff has little political capital and pressure from society to punish her for the country's state is growing.
Politicking aside, the legal issues are not clear, experts say.
Thomaz Pereira, a law professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation, says "you need a precise crime that can be personally pinned on the president in order to force resignation."
He's not sure that standard will be met.
"It's possible the political conditions will be there," he said, "but in our presidential system, impeachment is not to be turned into a vote of no-confidence."
The launching of impeachment proceedings Wednesday against Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff ends lengthy behind-the-scenes intrigue, but even now the complex legal process could take months, with the outcome far from certain.
A: The opposition says Rousseff fiddled government accounts in 2014 to mask budget holes during her reelection campaign. She is accused of breaking the law by taking unauthorized loans from state banks to cover government spending and also continuing this practice in 2015 at the start of her second term.
The nation’s accounting court, known as the TCU, gave the opposition significant ammunition in October by recommending that Congress reject the 2014 government accounts. However, it remains unclear whether Rousseff can be held personally culpable.
A: First the speaker of the lower house had to accept one of the pending impeachment petitions.
Now that that’s happened, the lower house of Congress will form a commission which votes within 15 days on whether to continue the impeachment proceedings.
The commission’s recommendation would then go to the full house where two-thirds of deputies — 342 out of 513 — are required for impeachment to be upheld.
At this point Rousseff would be suspended and the matter would go to the Senate for trial.
The upper house, overseen by the president of the Supreme Court, then votes, with a two thirds (54 of 81) majority needed to force Rousseff from office.
A: On paper, Rousseff’s ruling coalition, with 314 deputies, would easily defeat impeachment.
But with the country in economic crisis and Congress deeply split over Rousseff’s performance, she cannot take that support for granted. With only 10 percent approval ratings, Rousseff has little political capital and pressure from society to punish her for the country’s state is growing.
Politicking aside, the legal issues are not clear, experts say.
Thomaz Pereira, a law professor at the Getulio Vargas Foundation, says “you need a precise crime that can be personally pinned on the president in order to force resignation.”
He’s not sure that standard will be met.
“It’s possible the political conditions will be there,” he said, “but in our presidential system, impeachment is not to be turned into a vote of no-confidence.”
