Leading presidential candidate stabbed, almost killed, in Brazil.

Jair Bolsonaro moments before he was stabbed.

The leading presidential candidate in the Brazilian presidential race was stabbed and almost killed at a campaign event. AP. Jair Bolsonaro is a right wing candidate and was brought to the hospital "almost dead". Doctors were able to save his life but he will be intensive care for the next week and will require a colostomy bag. A 40 year old man has been arrested for the attack. He has been named as Adelio Bispo de Oliveira and was severely beaten by Bolsonaro's supporters at the scene. Oliveira's motive has not been released but he said he was on a "mission from God" and may have been mentally ill. Brazil is a deeply divided country and Bolsonaro is a divisive figure. He is considered Brazil's "Donald Trump" and has vowed to crack down on crime, loosen police shooting regulations and supports gun rights, but has also made some statements that some have deemed offensive. 

Video of the stabbing can be seen below but be aware of graphic content. 

My Comment:

I have been passively following Brazil's election and I was very surprised at this news. From what I understand Bolsonaro is very popular and was considered a lock as the next president, despite having been in jail. To see him get stabbed like this is shocking. To see any world leader, potential or otherwise, get stabbed like this is horrifying. 

What is more amazing to me though is that he was allowed to be carried through a crowd like this. If Bolsonaro's security force exists, they must have been horrified to see this. I know that in America you would never see a presidential candidate this vulnerable to an attack. And this attack demonstrates why. Either he doesn't have a security force, forced them to go along with this, or they dropped the ball pretty badly. 

That being said I know what Bolsonaro did this. Making physical contact with his supporters is a great way to establish relationships with them. It also shows that you aren't afraid to die for your beliefs and that you care more about your supporters than your very life. I have respect for him and other leaders that pull this off, with the Pope being another obvious example. 

I also think that this attack pretty much guarantees that Bolsonaro is going to win his election. He was already in the lead but this attack will generate a massive wave of sympathy for him. Even his opponents are saying that this attack went far beyond the red line of behavior and are rightly condemning it. People are going to think he is brave and willing to risk his life for his beliefs and that's a great quality for a leader. 

I am afraid that something like this could happen in the United States. We already had the Alexandria Baseball Shooting where a left wing nutjob attempted to murder most of the Republican leadership in the House and Senate. It was only the fact that there were armed police that responded to the attack and the fact that the shooter wasn't skilled with his weapon that nobody died in that attack except the shooter. 

I do think that like Brazil we have enough crazies out there as well. It doesn't really appear that this case was politically motivated. Instead it is like the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan by John Hinkley Jr. Just some crazy guy that didn't really care that much about politics but wanted to make a name for himself. I could be wrong of course but I doubt it. 

As for Bolsonaro himself, I tend to like him. He has made some pretty far out there statements, though with the media being as biased as it is it's hard to tell how many of them are accurate. He's been accused of racism, sexism and being anti-gay but then again so has everyone to the right of Che Guevara so I don't know how true those accusations are. It seems though that he does have some fairly right wing views that would have been pretty standard everywhere just a few years ago but that are also completely unacceptable to anyone on the left wing. 

Still, he's a gun rights advocate so that means I would support him under almost any circumstances. With Brazil's crime situation completely out of control the people in that country desperately need the right to defend themselves. With Bolsonaro saying his country needs a 2nd amendment as well, I'm all in. I sincerely hope that he recovers from this brutal attack and wins his election to President of Brazil.