Speaking after her October reelection, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said that she didn’t think the country was divided. That might have been wishful thinking.

The 2014 campaign was the most bitter since Brazil returned to direct popular elections in 1989. Supporters of Aécio Neves, Rousseff’s opponent in the runoff election, expressed legitimate — albeit selective — indignation over the corruption scandals that have plagued the Workers’ Party (PT) in its twelve years in power. A new right-wing punditry has taken ownership of this outrage, launching tirades against the evils of big government and cynical leftist agents seeking to undermine traditional values — a discourse reminiscent of the American Tea Party.

This new Brazilian right, unlike the Tea Party, does not have a foundational moment in national history it can appropriate in order to oppose any kind of progressive politics — what Jill Lepore calls an anti-historical perspective. But its members still see even the smallest left initiative as a lethal threat to their vision of a good society.