Guedes mocks Meirelles, says he ‘speaks stilted’ and that he’s not even an economist; watch video

The Minister of Economy, Paulo Guedes, mocked Henrique Meirelles during a meeting with businessmen in Minas Gerais, and said that the former president of the Central Bank – who is tipped to take over the Ministry of Finance in a possible Lula government – ​​is not even an economist.

In an event at Fiemg (Federation of Industries of Minas Gerais) this Wednesday (26), Guedes justified why the federal government had breached the spending ceiling in the past, arguing that the measure was poorly constructed.

“We arrived and made the onerous assignment. We resumed the auctions and gave money to the states and municipalities. [criticou dizendo] ‘they pierced the ceiling’… We pierced the ceiling because it is a very poorly constructed ceiling”, he said. Meirelles is not even an economist,” he added, amid applause from the audience.

Meirelles was responsible for creating the spending cap, a rule that prevents federal spending from growing beyond inflation, during the Michel Temer government (MDB). Saying that the former minister is not even an economist, Guedes said that even the father of the idea started to defend the non-compliance with the measure.

On Tuesday (25), Meirelles said that, in order to fund Auxílio Brasil in the amount of R$ 600, an alternative would be to create an exceptionality for 2023, saying that the rule would be “exceptionally exceeded”.

After the applause from the audience of businessmen, Guedes resumed with a mockery of the way in which Meirelles speaks. “He made a roof, spent years saying ‘oh why are they drilling into my roof’ [imitando a pronúncia do ex-ministro]. He talks stilted, doesn’t he?”, he said amid laughter from those present. “He has already announced that he is going to enter with a hole”, he added.

This is not the first time that Guedes admits that the federal government has breached the spending ceiling and says the rule has imperfections that need to be improved. Re-election candidate Jair Bolsonaro (PL) himself has already stated that the measure can be changed in a possible second term.

A recurring example of a problem cited by Guedes is the case of transfer of rights, when the government cedes the right to explore mineral reserves to third parties, for example. The Union understood that it would have to transfer part of the gains to states and municipalities. Despite being a punctual transfer, it was vetoed by the ceiling. The first change in the spending rule was then made, through a PEC (proposed amendment to the Constitution).

In this Wednesday’s event, the minister mentioned this example again. “The ceiling is precisely to not let the federal government hypertrophy itself. We are federalists, we believe in the states and municipalities. The resources have to go to the base”, he said. “When I want to make the government go down, I can’t, because I pierce the roof,” he added.

Minimum wage without correction for inflation

During the event, Guedes again said that there will be no change in the readjustment of the minimum wage. Last Wednesday (19), the Sheet revealed released the Ministry of Economy’s plan to de-index the minimum wage and retirement.

This Tuesday (25), Guedes blamed PT infiltrators in the ministry for the idea. When opening his speech at Fiemg, he told those present “don’t believe in fake news”.

“People who are not content with stealing only materially begin to steal the spirit, the tranquility of the citizen and the family. Guedes has no plan, he has no secret plan, he has nothing,” he said.

According to him, if the government has already given increases in the minimum wage and retirement during the pandemic, after the “war” the readjustment will be above inflation. At the end of his presentation, the minister said that, when he arrived at the airport in Belo Horizonte, he heard someone shouting: “take your hand off my salary”.

In a veiled reference to the candidate Lula, he said he responded. “Calm down, the thief is coming, he will help you”. Noting that his statement sounded like a bet on the opponent’s victory, Guedes justified himself by saying that he believes in Bolsonaro’s re-election and that he was just warning “the side he has to look at”.

Dispute for votes in Minas Gerais

The minister’s presence at an event at Fiemg is another chapter in the battle for votes that Lula and Bolsonaro are fighting in Minas Gerais four days before the second round, which takes place on October 30. In addition to the state gathering the second largest electorate in the country, since redemocratization all those elected have also triumphed in the Minas Gerais polls.

Opening the event, the president of Fiemg, Flávio Roscoe, said that the minister was invited to give a summary of the work of the federal government and an analysis of future perspectives. A supporter of Bolsonaro’s re-election, the Federation was the scene of several recent visits by the candidate.

Not to mention PT governments, Roscoe said that, in recent years, there has been a mentality that the entrepreneur exploits society. “There was a political discourse that demonized business activity. With the arrival of this government [Bolsonaro]this discourse began to be deconstructed”, he said.

Applauded several times, Guedes took advantage of his participation to praise his management of the economy, campaign for Bolsonaro and list promises. The minister repeated the speech that bad projections for the economy are from political activists and that they did not materialize.

“The misfortune happened for the next year. Next year, finally, the GDP will not grow. If the other candidate wins, I believe”, he said. According to him, the perception that Brazil was better in the past is an illusion.

Guedes ended his speech by saying that the state of Minas Gerais needs to make a difference in the elections. “I’m coming here to ask the gang for help here,” he said, making the victory sign with his fingers.