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Racking Task. Piled atop his economic problems, President Kubitschek has a full share of political worries. Within the armed forces, the "preventive revolution" left resentments strong enough to be troublesome if the government stumbles. Vice President Goulart, powerless under the constitution to do anything more than preside over the Senate, is likely to go his own political way, looking ahead to the 1960 election. Kubitschek is still under suspicion, in Brazil and abroad, of having made some kind of election deal with the Reds; anything he does or says that relates to Communism will be examined for signs that he is paying off a debt. And Brazil's Communists are stirring; they are under orders from Moscow to wage an intensive comeback campaign this year.
The problem of political payoffs proved worrisome to Kubitschek even before his inauguration. In making up his Cabinet, he had to consider the claims of political allies and his need for strong congressional support. What emerged after many hours was a line-up that seemed somewhat oldish and politico-ridden for a new administration with a dynamic program. Snapped Rio's Correio da Manhã: "Faced with the choice between a great Cabinet and Congressional majority, Senhor Kubitschek chose the latter." In at least two key Cabinet posts, however, Kubitschek placed his first choices: as Finance Minister, shrewd Federal Deputy José Maria Alkmin, a loyal friend since the telegraph-office days in Belo Horizonte; as War Minister, General Henrique Teixeira Lott.
To keep his campaign promises in spite of all his political and economic harassments will be a racking task even for a President with Juscelino Kubitschek's energy. But he seems confident that he can deliver, just as he did in Minas Gerais. "I take office," he said last week, "with a serene conviction that I can and will be a good President for my country."