When the president gets tied down
RIO GRANDE DO SUL: Riding with the gaúcho
BAHIA: Have Ford, will travel
MINAS GERAIS: Franco the noisy populist
Brazil's federal government cannot afford to let the states off lightly because of its own financial problems.
These days Brasília likes to talk about the primary surplus target of 3% for 1999 which it is likely to meet. The primary surplus is the budget position before taking account of debt interest and repayments. The more important number is the overall fiscal deficit, which is running at 8%.
A...
