A pleased grin creasing his tanned Gaucho's face. Joào ("Jango") Goulart stood before a joint session of Brazil's Congress one evening last week to be inaugurated as President of Brazil. By compromise and adroit political maneuvering, the man considered a demagogue and dangerous leftist by Brazil's conservative military brass was finally installed as the nation's chief executive. His legal powers were sharply limited under a constitutional amendment changing the government from a presidential to a parliamentary system. How much actual power he might wield depended on how well he got on with his Prime Minister and with Brazil's fractious, many-partied Congress.
From the start, opportunist Jango Goulart showed that he understood the realities—and the possibilities—of his situation. No one knew better than he that if he made an overt grab for full power, a civil war would result in which he could only lose. In all the fog surrounding Jánio Quadros' resignation, the one certainty emerging is that Quadros never intended his Vice President Goulart to rule (presumably he thought the prospect so alarming that he would be called back). Before he resigned, Quadros summoned his three armed forces ministers and brusquely told them: "With this Congress, I cannot govern. Organize a military junta and run the country." But the military faltered in the face of the public's rallying to constitutional methods, even if it meant bringing Goulart to power. Goulart suddenly found himself in a position to maneuver.
Half a Loaf. With a private army at his back of tough Gauchos from his own state of Rio Grande do Sul, Jango laid proper claim to the Presidency. In doing so, he had the backing of nearly every civilian leader in Brazil, whatever their misgivings. The solution was the inauguration of Goulart as President, but under a new constitutional amendment making him a figurehead in a parliamentary system controlled by a Prime Minister.
Acting like a man who believes half a loaf is better than none. Goulart gave his agreement, insisting only that the amendment be presented to Brazilians in a referendum. Said one Congressman: "Congress has done all it can. Now it is up to the military."
As it turned out. the only obstacle to Goulart's installation was a portion of Brazil's air force. Though all the service chiefs agreed to go along, the air force men in Brasilia still threatened to shoot Goulart down if he attempted to fly from his Pōrto Alegre stronghold to the capital. The revolt lasted only a few hours, and then Acting President Pascoal Mazzilli phoned Goulart that the way was clear. "I'll be ready to take off by noon," said Jango.
Despite his quick promise, the careful Goulart took no chances. He waited until dusk before boarding a Varig Airlines Caravelle jet. At 8:15 p.m., the lights of Brasilia shone below, and the plane was blacked out. At the last possible moment, the Caravelle pilot flipped on his landing lights, the plane touched down, and President Goulart was safely in the capital.