Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · 2d

(And I say this so, so endearingly about both.)

Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · 2d

There was a popular meme a few years back that "Brazil is more than soccer and samba" and yes, 100% it definitely is but also sometimes...nope.

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · 2d

Covering Brazil is a battle not to turn everything into a football metaphor only for the president to often turn things into a football metaphor.

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · 2d

"In conversations with close aides, Lula has begun referring to the son of Jair Bolsonaro, Eduardo, as 'my #10,'" an ironic nod to his lobbying for Trump tariffs and sanctions that have given the Brazilian leader a boost in popularity.

oglobo.globo.com/blogs/malu-g...

O apelido futebolístico que Lula deu a Eduardo Bolsonaro

Presidente criou apelido em uma brincadeira com o fato de a atuação do filho de Jair Bolsonaro ter ajudado a melhorar sua popularidade

oglobo.globo.com

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · 5d

Trump's lifeline, meanwhile, appears set to do little to boost Milei in midterm elections that will serve as a key referendum on the libertarian leader's austerity drive. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Trump Lifeline Does Little to Boost Milei With Argentina Voters

Donald Trump’s extraordinary financial assistance for Argentina may be enough to shore up local markets until a key midterm election later this month, but it’s doing little to boost President Javier M...

www.bloomberg.com

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · 5d

For Bessent’s $20 billion bet on Argentina to pay off, a lot of things have to go right.

The problem is that in Argentina -- a nation with a track record of squandering other people’s money and defaulting on its own debts -- those things have tended to go wrong.

www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Bessent’s Big Gamble on Argentina Has a Narrow Road to Pay Off

For Scott Bessent’s $20 billion bet on Argentina to pay off, a lot of things have to go right – things that in the past, in Argentina, have tended to go wrong.

www.bloomberg.com

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · 8d

Relevant here: Brazil’s exports rose 7% in September even as shipments to the US plummeted again.

Exports to Argentina, China and other markets are blunting the impact of Trump’s tariffs, while the levies drive higher coffee prices for American consumers. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Brazil Posts Export Growth, Resisting Blow From US Tariffs

Brazil’s overall exports grew last month as greater shipments to destinations like China and Argentina blunted the hit from 50% tariffs imposed by the U.S. government, according to data published on M...

www.bloomberg.com

Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · 8d

Trump and Brazil’s Lula spoke by phone Monday. The man who inspired their months-long battle — Jair Bolsonaro — didn’t merit a mention.

It’s too early for Lula to declare victory. But the leader known for an ability to charm sure seems to have momentum behind him.

www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Trump Seems to Turn Page on Bolsonaro in ‘Very Good’ Lula Call

When Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Donald Trump finally talked over their differences Monday, the man at the center of their months-long spat didn’t even merit a mention.

www.bloomberg.com

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Reposted by Travis Waldron

Natalie Weiner @natalieweiner.bsky.social · 22d

Amanda Shires spent an afternoon introducing me to Lubbock and a small portion of those very fun hours is now chronicled in Texas Monthly ahead of her new album :) gift link: www.texasmonthly.com/arts-enterta...

Amanda Shires Tells Her Side of the Story After Divorce From Jason Isbell: “I'm Not Scared”

After a marriage in the spotlight ended in brutal divorce, the singer-songwriter-fiddler is telling her story, her way.

www.texasmonthly.com

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · 22d

Loved this, great piece

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Sep 11

Jair Bolsonaro found guilty of attempting a coup in Brazil after his 2022 defeat.

A historic ruling for a country that has had more than a dozen coup attempts in its past but never before prosecuted such a high-ranking official for one. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Brazil’s Bolsonaro Found Guilty in Coup Case by Majority of Supreme Court Panel

A majority of judges on a Brazil Supreme Court panel found Jair Bolsonaro guilty of attempting a coup after his 2022 election defeat, making him the country’s first former president convicted of such ...

www.bloomberg.com

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Aug 14

It’s unfortunately time to raise Norm’s taxes.

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Aug 12

Will never forget sitting in a cafe at the entrance of Mare talking to residents about Olympic policing efforts as military vehicles drove past to secure routes to the airport.

The community magazine, O Cidadão, had a question on the cover that month: “Segurança pública para quem?”

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Aug 7

“There is good reason to think” SCOTUS “will use this case to conclude its war on the Voting Rights Act.”

“In doing so, the court would extinguish a law that more than any other made the promise of American democracy a reality,” @jamellebouie.net writes.

www.nytimes.com/2025/08/06/o...

Opinion | The Death of the Fourth American Republic

www.nytimes.com

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Aug 5

Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro was placed under house arrest Monday, ahead of his trial on charges he attempted a coup.

Now the question is if Trump, who’s threatened tariffs and sanctioned a top court judge, will further escalate his pressure campaign against Brazil. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Bolsonaro Ordered Into House Arrest for Disobeying Brazil Court

Jair Bolsonaro was ordered into house arrest Monday by a Brazilian Supreme Court justice who said the former president had violated a social media ban for the second time while awaiting trial on an al...

www.bloomberg.com

Reposted by Travis Waldron

Rodger Sherman @rodger.bsky.social · Aug 3

the USA built a system of higher education so good that smart/rich people from across the world came here, spending billions to learn here, subsidizing education for Americans while spending money to live in our cities and towns. our government arbitrarily decided we should stop doing that

Steve Herman @w7voa.journa.host.ap.brid.gy · Aug 3

The US could see a 30-40% decline in new international student enrollment, resulting in nearly $7 billion in lost revenue and more than 60,000 fewer American jobs. https://www.nafsa.org/fall-2025-international-student-enrollment-outlook-and-economic-impact

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Reposted by Travis Waldron

Joe Sheehan @sheehannewsletter.bsky.social · Aug 1

I will say this again and again until the cap fetishists get it. There is a 1:1 correlation between "leagues that have broken their unions" and "leagues with a payroll cap." Let that be a clue as to who wins in a cap system.

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Reposted by Travis Waldron

b @arsenalistrator.createfc.com · Jul 27

what a year

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Jul 27

Chloe Kelly rules.

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Jul 25

History forgot the horrors endured by laborers on Volkswagen's massive cattle ranch in the Brazilian Amazon. But a priest had recorded it all.

Absolutely outstanding reporting and storytelling here.

www.washingtonpost.com/world/intera...

Volkswagen kept a dark secret in the Amazon. Then a priest made a call.

Poor laborers were lured to the automaker’s cattle ranch in the Amazon and promised a better life. Brazilian prosecutors say many were enslaved.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Jul 15

Was a bit less specific than I should’ve been there in bid to save characters.

62% say they’re a unjustified, 50% agree they’re an attack on Brazil’s sovereignty, Lula’s specific argument. Latter is potentially affected by polarization around the Bolsonaro legal cases, I’d think?

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Jul 15

Lula has struggled to arrest declining approval.

We did a big piece on his problems a month ago — with a wonder if Trump may help rejuvenate the leftist lion a la liberals in Canada and Australia.

Still a long way to 2026 election, but perhaps a shot in the arm. www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...

Once the World’s ‘Most Popular Politician,’ Lula Is Losing His Way in Brazil

High inflation and economic discontent are hammering Lula’s approval. Allies say the real problem is a 79-year-old president who’s stuck in the past.

www.bloomberg.com

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Travis Waldron @traviswaldron.bsky.social · Jul 15

Trump Effect arrives in Brazil?

New Bloomberg/AtlasIntel survey shows approval of Brazil’s Lula nearing 50% amid Trump tariff fight, best levels of the year.

50% say tariffs are attack on Brazil. 63% of Brazilians now say they hold negative view of Trump.

www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Brazilians Back Lula Against Trump, Calling Tariffs Unjustified

Most Brazilians see Donald Trump’s threat of a 50% tariff as unjustified meddling in internal affairs and believe President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s administration is responding appropriately, acco...

www.bloomberg.com

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Reposted by Travis Waldron

Anna Bower @annabower.bsky.social · Jul 2

NEW: Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s lawyers seek permission to file an amended complaint in his civil case in Maryland.

Among other things, the amended complaint “includes Abrego Garcia's first-hand account of torture and mistreatment at CECOT…”

Case 8:25-cv-00951-PX
Document 211
Filed 07/02/25 Page 2 of 5
3. The proposed Amended Complaint details the Government's defiance of court
orders after this Court granted preliminary injunctive relief. The Amended Complaint includes
allegations that the Government made decisions to defy judicial mandates. These allegations are
new to the Complaint, but have been cited in various filings in this Court as the case has developed.
They are directly relevant to Plaintiffs' constitutional claims and outstanding requests for
declaratory and prospective injunctive relief.
4. Plaintiffs also seek to incorporate evidence that emerged in a June 2025
whistleblower disclosure from former DOJ official Erez Reuveni, who was previously counsel for
the Government in this case. The new allegations include government officials internally
acknowledging that Abrego Garcia's removal was an "administrative error" while simultaneously
working to prevent his return and to make post-hoc justifications. These revelations provide
evidence of deliberate misconduct that was unavailable when the original Complaint was filed and
directly support Plaintiffs' claims.
5. The proposed Amended Complaint also Includes Abrego Garcia's first-hand
account of torture and mistreatment at CECOT, as well as developments regarding his return to the United States and the Government's stated plan to remove him again. These allegations identify
the severe harm actually suffered and the threat of repeated unlawful removal that supports
Plaintiffs' request for prospective injunctive relief. The inclusion of these facts, which could not
have been pleaded at the time of the original filing, is essential to present a complete picture of the
violations and ensure adequate relief.
6. Plaintiffs also propose to clarify that the relief sought includes restoring the status
quo ante, which requires (among other things) the Government to return Abrego Garcia to
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Reposted by Travis Waldron

Anna Bower @annabower.bsky.social · Jul 2

“In Cell 15, Plaintiff Abrego Garcia and 20 other Salvadorans were forced to kneel from approximately 9:00 PM to 6:00 AM, with guards striking anyone who fell from exhaustion. During this time, Plaintiff Abrego Garcia was denied bathroom access and soiled himself…”

120. Upon arrival at CECOT, the detainees were greeted by a prison official who stated,
"Welcome to CECOT. Whoever enters here doesn't leave." Plaintiff Abrego Garcia was then
forced to strip, issued prison clothing, and subjected to physical abuse including being kicked in
the legs with boots and struck on his head and arms to make him change clothes faster. His head
was shaved with a zero razor, and he was frog-marched to cell 15, being struck with wooden batons
along the way. By the following day, Plaintiff Abrego Garcia had visible bruises and lumps all over his body.
121. In Cell 15, Plaintiff Abrego Garcia and 20 other Salvadorans were forced to kneel
from approximately 9:00 PM to 6:00 AM, with guards striking anyone who fell from exhaustion.
During this time, Plaintiff Abrego Garcia was denied bathroom access and soiled himself The
detainees were confined to metal bunks with no mattresses in an overcrowded cell with no
windows, bright lights that remained on 24 hours a day, and minimal access to sanitation.
122. After approximately one week at CECOT, prison director Osiris Luna and other
officials separated the 21 Salvadorans who had arrived together. Twelve individuals with visible gang-related tattoos were moved to another cell, while Plaintiff Abrego Garcia remained with eight
others who, like him, upon information and belief had no gang affiliations or tattoos.
123. As reflected by his segregation, the Salvadoran authorities recognized that Plaintiff Abrego Garcia was not affiliated with any gang and, at around this time, prison officials explicitly acknowledged that Plaintiff Abrego Garcia's tattoos were not gang-related, telling him "your

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