Many Political Parties
Brazil has 15 political parties in Congress, the main ones which are:
The government is also huge, as it takes up from 35 to almost 40% of GDP since 1998, and while this is about the amount that the wealthy countries such as the US but smaller than some in Europe like Austria, it's much higher than the US was at Brazil's stage, around 1913, and those taxes were about 7%! And so that means the Brazilian government is about five times bigger than it should be for growth like the United States experienced.
- Workers’ Party (PT-center-left)
- Liberal Front Party (PFL-right)
- Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB-center)
- Brazilian Social Democratic Party (PSDB-center-left)
- Progressive Party (PP-right)
- Brazilian Labor Party (PTB-center-right)
- Liberal Party (PL-center-right)
- Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB-left)
- Popular Socialist Party (PPS-left)
- Democratic Labor Party (PDT-left)
- Communist Party of Brazil (PCdoB-left)
- Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL–left)
The government is also huge, as it takes up from 35 to almost 40% of GDP since 1998, and while this is about the amount that the wealthy countries such as the US but smaller than some in Europe like Austria, it's much higher than the US was at Brazil's stage, around 1913, and those taxes were about 7%! And so that means the Brazilian government is about five times bigger than it should be for growth like the United States experienced.
The Military
Established in the 1820s, Brazil's military has grown and advanced all the way to being one of the top defense spenders in the world, with a record high being just over 45 billion dollars in 1990. Influenced by the French, British, and Americans, the Brazilian military became stronger, and among the best in Latin America, pushing its neighbors back. In Brazil, especially from the early twentieth century, we see the famous guns vs butter debate starting to emerge, as the nation has built up its defense industry, while at the same time it's still a developing nation and needs to focus on its economy. Should it continue to lower defense expenditures as has been happening from 2010 to 2011, Brazil would be able to put in more money into the economy and lower taxes, or at least put them to more productive purposes. But, at the same time Brazil would be weaker on the international stage, and would lose some reputation, for usually most countries would look to a military for aid rather than simply a strong economy, as a military can secure a nation and protect it. Yet, if Brazil increases defense expenditures, maybe due to a military threat or having to increase its military strength in order to make a deal with another nation, it will cut off resources from the economy, increase taxes, and thereby lower consumer spending and the money consumers earn. This therefore would lower the GDP should government spending also include imports for military goods, for adding imports lowers net exports according to the GDP equation, and the guns vs butter itself relates to economics as it represents tradeoffs in the Brazilian government at its most famous level.