AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH BRAZILIAN CONGRESSIONAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BRASILIA 001018

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/13/2015
TAGS: PGOV CVIS PINR PREL SOCI BR
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH BRAZILIAN CONGRESSIONAL
LEADERS

REF: BRASILIA 767

Classified By: CLASSIFIED BY POLOFF RICHARD REITER, FOR 1.4B AND

D.


1. (C) SUMMARY. On April 12, Ambassador Danilovich met with
the new Speaker of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies,
Severino Cavalcanti, who --in his two months leading the
lower house of Congress-- has butted heads with the Lula
administration and entertained the press with his untailored
style. Cavalcanti described his participation in the
Brazilian delegation to the Pope's funeral and asked for
assistance funds for his home state. Later, the Ambassador
hosted five key Brazilian Senators at dinner. Among the
topics raised was the possibility of eliminating the visa
requirement for US visitors to Brazil. END SUMMARY.

SEVERINO CAVALCANTI
--------------

2. (C) On April 12, Ambassador Danilovich paid a courtesy
call on Severino Cavalcanti, who in February defeated Lula's
preferred candidate to become Speaker of the Brazilian
Chamber of Deputies after a long and undistinguished career
in state and federal politics. Cavalcanti has raised
eyebrows over the past two months with his failed effort to
boost Congressional salaries, his artless defense of nepotism
(he has secured public sector jobs for nine relatives),and
his squabbles with President Lula designed to demonstrate
that Congress will be more independent of the administration
in the future (reftel).

POPE'S FUNERAL "TOUCHED ALL WHO WERE THERE"
--------------

3. (C) Cavalcanti explained that the poster-sized photo over
his desk of himself with Pope John Paul II was taken in 2001
when he visited Rome as part of a group "in defense of the
family". Cavalcanti, who joined President Lula and the
Brazilian delegation at the Pope's funeral, noted that the
funeral "touched all who were there", adding that he was
delighted by the presence of so many young people in Rome.
The Speaker, a conservative from the right-of-center
Progressive Party (PP),explained that he believes Brazil and
the US are "natural allies" regardless of the government in
power. Known for his patronage style of local politics,
Cavalcanti pointed out that his home state of Pernambuco and
the entire northeast of Brazil are subject to "great poverty"
and would welcome US investments. He returned to this theme
several times during the conversation and offered to draw up
a list of organizations that could by funded by the embassy
or US investors in support of Pernambuco's economic
development.

FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC POLITICS
--------------

4. (C) Turning to Brazilian politics, Cavalcanti noted that
he believes Lula will be elected to a second term in 2006,
and that he will vote for him, despite defeating Lula's
preferred candidate in the maneuvering to become Speaker. He
insisted that Congress will be independent of the Lula
administration over the next two years. Regarding foreign
policy, he explained that developed countries must be more
attentive to how their policies (import barriers, for
example) affect the economies of developing nations. The
Ambassador agreed, noting that the US is working --through
FTAA and WTO-- to address these issues. The Speaker pointed
out that developing micro- and small businesses is a good
strategy for Brazil's development, which is why he killed an
administration bill that would have raised taxes on the
agriculture and service sectors. This defeat, he said, will
sensitize Lula to the fact that development must come through
increased productivity rather than higher taxes.

AN UNSOPHISTICATED MAN
--------------

5. (C) Cavalcanti is not a sophisticated man and does not
strike a visitor as a deep thinker. His 74 years may be
taking their toll, as his notes were prepared in oversized
fonts and a few times he had trouble hearing the Ambassador's
comments. He is mentally sharp and self-confident, and he
became notably more voluble on topics with which he is
intimately familiar (such as why he killed Lula's tax bill).
His inner office is spartan, adorned with the large photo of
the Pope, a dusty STU-III telephone, and a shelf of carved
wooden images of Catholic saints. He was joined at the
meeting by his international affairs advisor --a Foreign
Ministry secondee who studiously took notes and offered
occasional translation-- and his long-time Chief-of-Staff who
hovered nearby. Although he has said in interviews that he
has not read a book or been to the movies in many years,
Cavalcanti accepted the Ambassador's gift of a book of
Abraham Lincoln's speeches gracefully. He said he was
inspired at age thirteen when he read a book about Lincoln's
personal story. "Lincoln gave me my ambition", he said.
"I'll read these speeches and I hope they will give me a
better public voice."

DINNER WITH THE SENATORS
--------------

6. (C) Also on April 12, the Ambassador hosted five key
Brazilian Senators at dinner: current Senate President Renan
Calheiros (PMDB); former Senate President Jose Sarney (PMDB);
Tasso Jereissati of Ceara (PSDB); Paulo Octavio of Brasilia
(PFL); and Eduardo Azeredo of Minas Gerais (PSDB). Calheiros
became Senate President in February after winning a tough
battle against Sarney, who wanted to remain in that post for
two more years. The two have reconciled and together lead
the pro-Lula wing of the divided PMDB party. It was
interesting to note how deferential Calheiros is to Sarney,
72, who was Brazil's President in 1985-1990 and remains a
powerful kingmaker with great influence in several parties
and states. Calheiros is savvy and competent in his own
right, but often glanced at Sarney while making comments or
invited the former President to add further remarks. Sarney,
who always positions himself on the side of the government in
power, said that he will continue to support Lula, who he
believes will be reelected in 2006.

A PUSH FOR VISA EXEMPTIONS FOR US VISITORS
--------------

7. (C) Senator Paulo Octavio announced that he is sponsoring
a bill to exempt US visitors to Brazil from having to obtain
Brazilian visas, and says he has support on the floor. He
recognizes that the US will not be able to reciprocate, but
believes that attracting more US tourists and investors to
Brazil will provide economic benefits that far outweigh the
value of strict adherence to a reciprocal visa regime. When
the Ambassador pointed out that Brazil's notoriously
protocol-conscious Foreign Ministry ("Itamaraty") will likely
oppose his measure, Octavio snorted, "Itamaraty will do what
Congress tells them". A Foreign Ministry representative
(Sen. Calheiros' International Affairs Advisor) was at the
dinner and, indeed, expressed opposition. He stated, with
visible frustration (and incorrectly),that he is not aware
of any instances where the US does not insist on reciprocity,
i.e., where a country allows US visitors to enter without
visas while the US requires visas of that country's citizens.
(Note, in fact the list of such countries is long and
includes, inter alia, most of Latin America. Post will
provide provide this list to the Senators.) Clearly, the
Foreign Ministry will be an obstacle to Sen. Octavio's
efforts.


8. (C) But Octavio is not alone. Separately, Emboffs met on
April 13 with Federal Deputy Carlos Cadoca, who hails from
tourist-friendly Recife and is pushing a bill similar to Sen.
Octavio's to exempt US visitors from Brazilian visa
requirements. Cadoca's bill is in committee, and he told us
that he is facing stiff resistance from Lula's Workers' Party
in Congress. He plans to hold public hearings in the coming
weeks in order to publicize the economic benefits his bill
would bring. But Cadoca noted that Itamaraty is not alone in
resisting a unilateral visa exemption for US visitors. Many
Brazilians, he said, are persuaded that US consular and
immigration authorities do not like Brazilians and treat them
poorly. This attitude will complicate passage of his bill.
It is far too early to say whether these proposals can be
implemented, but we will remain in close touch with Sen.
Octavio and Deputy Cadoca as their bills move forward.
DANILOVICH