CNN
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Prior to Brazilian people President Jair Bolsonaro is seeking a six-month tourist visa to stay in the United States, the law firm representing Bolsonaro confirmed to CNN Brasil on Monday.
The request was filed on Friday, January 27, AG Immigration told CNN Brasil, and comes amid reports that he came to the US on an A-1 visa, which is issued to heads of state and is only valid when they are in that position. The US State Department declined to confirm Bolsonaro’s visa status due to confidentiality.
Bolsonaro was in Florida since December 30, leaving Brazil a few days before the January 1 inauguration of his successor, incumbent President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Five public servants were authorized to accompany him to Miami from January 1 to 30.
His presence in Florida drew criticism from House Democrats, who in mid-January urged US President Joe Biden not to “provide shelter” to Bolsonaro after when his supporters stormed Brazilian democratic institutions in the capital Brasilia – an attack that drew comparisons to the US Capitol riots on January 6, 2021.
The former leader denounced the attack, but experts say his repeated and unfounded claims of voter fraud in the run-up to the October election incited the anger of his supporters. Before Sunday’s violence, they had been camping for months in the capital and security outside the parliament building had been beefed up due to their presence.
On January 13, the Supreme Court of Brazil accepted a request from the prosecutor’s office to investigate Bolsonaro for his alleged involvement in the January 8 attacks in Brasilia.
CNN has reached out to AG Immigration for comment.
