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The Limits of Pragmatism: The Rise and Fall of the Brazilian Workers’ Party (2002-2016)

Loureiro, Pedro Mendes; Saad Filho, Alfredo

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Authors

Pedro Mendes Loureiro

Alfredo Saad Filho



Abstract

Under favorable external circumstances, the pragmatic political and economic strategy of Brazil’s Partido dos Trabalhadores (Workers’ Party—PT) helped to secure short-term political stability, boosted growth, and supported an unprecedented distribution of income. However, it also meant that the PT had to accommodate to rather than transform the constraints on growth in Brazil and that stability would involve unwieldy political alliances preventing deeper reforms. When it was confronted with deteriorating global economic conditions and increasingly ineffectual economic policies, the PT’s strategy immobilized the party, facilitated the dissolution of its base of support, and expedited its ouster from power. The Brazilian experience suggests that political pragmatism can, within limits, support progressive economic change but that the outcomes depend heavily on external circumstances and the stability of the political coalitions supporting the administration.

Em circunstâncias externas favoráveis, a pragmática estratégia política e econômica do Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT) ajudou a assegurar a estabilidade política no curto prazo, impulsionou o crescimento e apoiou uma distribuição de renda sem precedentes. No entanto, isso também significou que o PT teve que se acomodar a, em vez de transformar, as restrições ao crescimento no Brasil, e que a estabilidade envolveria alianças políticas comprometedoras, impedindo reformas mais profundas. Quando foi confrontada com a deterioração das condições econômicas globais e apresentando políticas econômicas cada vez mais ineficazes, a estratégia do PT imobilizou o partido, facilitou a dissolução de sua base de apoio e acelerou sua saída do poder. A experiência brasileira sugere que o pragmatismo político pode, dentro de certos limites, apoiar a mudança econômica progressista, mas que os resultados dependem muito das circunstâncias externas e da estabilidade das coalizões políticas que apóiam a administração.

Citation

Loureiro, P. M., & Saad Filho, A. (2019). The Limits of Pragmatism: The Rise and Fall of the Brazilian Workers’ Party (2002-2016). Latin American Perspectives, 46(1), 66-84. https://doi.org/10.1177/0094582X18805093

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Feb 10, 2018
Online Publication Date Oct 10, 2018
Publication Date Jan 1, 2019
Deposit Date Jul 6, 2017
Publicly Available Date Jul 6, 2017
Journal Latin American Perspectives
Print ISSN 0094-582X
Electronic ISSN 1552-678X
Publisher SAGE Publications
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 46
Issue 1
Pages 66-84
DOI https://doi.org/10.1177/0094582X18805093
Keywords Brazil, Pragmatism, Workers’ Party, Drivers of growth, Neoliberalism

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