A 17 días del balotaje del 25 de octubre en Brasil, el oficialista Partido de los Trabajadores (PT) quedó envuelto en una fuerte interna ante los crecientes cuestionamientos al influyente rol de la primera dama Janja Lula en la campaña electoral de su esposo y presidente, Lula da Silva.

“Más Alckmin, menos Janja”, clamó la dirigente petista y exsenadora Katya Abreu al pedir una mayor participación en la campaña del actual vicepresidente, Gerardo Alckmin, quien aspira a renovar su cargo.

El vice es una respetada figura de centro que le ha servido a Lula para tranquilizar a los mercados y a sectores empresariales por sus posturas más moderadas dentro del gobierno de izquierda.

A Rosângela da Silva, más conocida como Janja, se le achaca una exagerada participación en la campaña previa al primer turno de las elecciones del domingo pasado ganadas por el candidato derechista Flávio Bolsonaro con dos puntos de ventaja (47% a 45%) sobre Lula.

La primera dama no solo acompañó a su esposo en las giras de campaña, sino que además habló y cantó en numerosos actos públicos. Algunos dirigentes del PT afirman por lo bajo que su figura, vista como radical, genera más rechazo que simpatías en el electorado. También la cuestionan por manejar a su antojo la agenda de su esposo.

“Su participación en la campaña fue negativa, tal como lo fue durante todo el gobierno. Es políticamente torpe: se expresa de manera inoportuna y fuera del tono adecuado. Además, transmite una imagen de cierto deslumbramiento ante la posición que ha adquirido”, dijo a TN el analista brasileño Claudio Couto, de la Fundación Getúlio Vargas.

Las críticas de Katya Abreu

Hasta ahora, los cuestionamientos se hacían puertas y en voz baja adentro del PT. Pero el fuerte golpe del primer turno aceleró la crisis.

La ex senadora Katya Abreu fue tajante al pedir que la saquen del medio.

“No se trata de género, sino de prioridades electorales. ¿Genera simpatía? ¿Consigue votos? Nos estamos dando cuenta de que no, y todo el mundo habla de ello. Eso no le resta valor. Podría ser yo. Esto de generar simpatía o no es una etapa de la vida. Ahora mismo, no la genera. En este momento, ¿cuál es la prioridad: ¿aparecer en público o elegir a su marido? Para mí, es elegir a Lula. No se trata de ser duro con ella, sino de ser duro con sus excesos que no generan nada positivo«, afirmó.

Bolsonaro

Florida’s sweeping Medicaid fraud crackdown has helped drive a nearly $1 billion reduction in projected annual spending on behavioral therapy services alone, according to state officials, after investigators uncovered suspicious billing practices.

Tallahassee’s internal crackdown — which included discoveries of providers billing Medicaid for more hours than there are in a day — comes amid heightened federal scrutiny of Medicaid fraud, including investigations and payment reviews involving Minnesota.

The DeSantis administration said its approach aims to stop suspicious Medicaid claims before taxpayer dollars are paid out rather than trying to recover improper payments afterward. The strategy mirrors a call from HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to move away from traditional «pay-and-chase» models.

«This year, we announced the most significant Medicaid integrity initiative in the history of our state, and today, I was proud to announce some of the results from these efforts,» Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a news release.

VANCE TURNS UP HEAT ON STATES WITH FEDERAL CASH THREAT OVER MEDICAID FRAUD CRACKDOWN

More than 220 Medicaid providers have been terminated for fraud, waste or abuse, while more than 260 have faced payment restrictions or suspensions. The state has also referred more than 150 suspected fraud cases to the attorney general’s office over the past year.

Annual Medicaid spending on Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), a therapy commonly used for children with autism, had been projected to reach $3.86 billion but is now expected to total $2.88 billion in fiscal year 2026-27, according to the governor’s office. Officials attributed the nearly $980 million reduction to a combination of fraud enforcement, managed care and utilization management efforts.

Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) told Digital that its expanded monitoring uncovered providers billing Medicaid for services through every weekend and holiday for months, including instances in which providers billed for more than 24 hours of services in a single day.

«Protecting Medicaid means protecting the people it was created to serve,» AHCA Secretary Shevaun Harris said in a statement.

FRAUD EXPERT EXPOSES HOW HIDDEN NETWORKS DROVE MINNESOTA FRAUD, OTHER MAJOR SCAMS: ‘CRIMINAL ENTERPRISE’

«For children, pregnant women, the disabled, and our seniors, it means making sure they have access to high-quality care while ensuring taxpayer dollars are not lost to fraud or abuse. AHCA will continue taking decisive action to strengthen program integrity, hold bad actors accountable and safeguard these critical services for Floridians,» she said.

Harris’ agency provided additional details on its crackdown to Digital, including how its new fraud-protection mechanisms work.

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Through a pilot program with identity-verification firm SentiLink, Florida is screening for stolen or fake identities and hidden ownership structures among Medicaid providers. Separately, the state has imposed enrollment moratoriums on certain high-risk provider categories.

AHCA also told Digital that it has issued more than 1,000 adverse decisions involving Medicaid provider enrollment or re-enrollment since January 2026, part of its effort to prevent suspicious providers from entering or remaining in the program.

The agency has conducted 400 site visits to providers since January, including providers in high-risk categories such as applied behavior analysis, medical equipment and adult day care.

«Medicaid fraud is a national problem, and it is growing more sophisticated everywhere,» AHCA told Digital.

«Florida is not waiting to be told what to do. We are building the model: prevent fraud at the front door, verify every provider, and follow the data. We welcome partnership with CMS and other states, because a fraudulent provider stopped in Florida is a scheme that does not move on to the next state.»

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EXCLUSIVE: As Elon Musk prepares to receive a prestigious honor from President Donald Trump Thursday afternoon, several sources familiar with the pair’s relationship say the trillionaire is back in the administration’s fold after last year’s nasty blowup between the pair.

«Water under the bridge,» one former administration official told Digital when about to classify the falling out and subsequent rekindling of the pair’s relationship.

Musk had a meteoric rise within the MAGA movement during the 2024 presidential election and, after Trump was re-elected, joined the administration to lead massive federal government cuts under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). During that time, he had a chummy relationship with Trump, who presented him with a ceremonial golden key to the White House during an Oval Office celebration.

In May 2025, Musk left the government after leading DOGE for four months. The CEO of Tesla, SpaceX and X (formerly Twitter) was reportedly at odds with Trump over the amount of government spending tied to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which he viewed as antithetical to DOGE’s effort to reduce wasteful spending in a bloated federal government.

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On June 3, 2025, Musk took to the social media platform he owns to rail against the bill, describing it as a «disgusting abomination.»

«KILL THE BILL,» Musk wrote on X the following day.

Trump fired back in a social media post of his own, saying Musk had been «wearing thin» on him, and that Musk went «CRAZY» after Trump rolled back what the administration described as a Biden-era «backdoor electric vehicle mandate.»

Musk then claimed that Trump would not have won the 2024 election without his financial support and accused him of «ingratitude.» Through his America PAC, Musk helped fund the campaigns of Trump and other Republicans to the tune of nearly $300 million. Musk later accused Trump of being in the infamous Epstein files, though he never provided proof for the claim.

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At that point, a former White House official told Digital that Musk was completely removed from the White House fold.

«He wasn’t in the office at all,» the source said. Musk had previously occupied a space in the Eisenhower Executive Office Space, alongside other White House staff.

But, the former official said it’s in Trump’s nature to rekindle old relationships, regardless of how nasty the dustup.

In fact, Trump and his longtime personal attorney, Michael Cohen, just revived their old friendship in September, despite a major falling out and Cohen’s testimony against Trump during the 2024 «hush money» trial involving adult entertainer Stormy Daniels.

A third source familiar with the matter said Musk began getting back into Trump’s good graces earlier this year, while a current administration official disputed the characterization that Musk was fully out of the White House fold in the first place.

The administration official said that despite the fallout, Musk has been seen recently at the White House, in part because he’s making good on promises to financially support Republican candidates in the 2026 midterm elections.

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Musk has made several high-profile appearances at the White House in recent weeks. He was at the America.gov launch in late September, alongside engineers from the National Design Studio who built the AI-powered website. He appeared again during Trump’s state dinner with Chinese President Xi Jinping last month, and was seated at the president’s table.

Thursday afternoon, Trump is slated to award Musk the National Medal of Science, the nation’s top award for scientific and technological achievement, as first reported by Digital.

«The Trump administration is grateful for the contributions of these incredible leaders in science and technology. These recipients are helping ensure America keeps leading the world in innovation,» White House spokesperson Liz Huston told Digital regarding the award.

Digital reached out to Musk and the White House for comment.

Fox News’ Ashley J. DiMella contributed to this report.

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