The Jair Bolsonaro who appeared in court was a far cry from the aggressive and crude public persona with which the Brazilian public has become accustomed over the last 40 years. On the stand, he did his best to appear humble and charming. In short, he didn’t threaten to kill any communists, talk about raping anyone, or ridicule people dying of respiratory failure. Nor did he make any spurious corruption allegations against the five members of the Supreme Court’s First Panel, who are ruling on the trial.

During three hours of questioning by Justice Alexandre de Moraes, Justice Luis Fux, and Attorney General Paulo Gonet, he denied that he had ever plotted against the democratic rule of law, downplayed the charges against him, and used every opportunity to promote his four years in the presidency. He took credit for initiatives like the São Francisco River irrigation project—which was 90% completed when he took office—and attributed the drop in the crime rate during his tenure (which corresponds nearly perfectly with the period of quarantine during the COVID-19 pandemic) to his deregulation of handgun ownership.

He threw the January 8 Capitol rioters under the bus, spreading disinformation about their........

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