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There is actually a very popular meme in Brazil for what you just did, where a character appears out of nowhere to ask, "What about Lula?" — meaning that if one can find any act (or accusation) of malice from Lula or his party, anything bad the other side does is justifiable and Lula (or his supporters) can't complain.

https://tenor.com/pt-BR/view/e-o-pt-e-o-lula-pt-lula-gif-174...

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It's called "whataboutism" in general. The word is used to easily wave away criticism of the other side of the argument without actually addressing it.

“But her emails!” / “but her laugh” / “but he wore a tan suit” for instance. All used to excuse high crimes and thefts of billions of dollars.

Complaining about whataboutism can be its own kind of whataboutism. I wish people I politically sympathize with would stop giving their enemies good points.

Yes, it’s not whataboutism if it’s part of a discussion about bipartisan corruption, for instance. Or when discussing the causes of conflict between two countries. It’s a problem when it is used without context to deflect from the bad actions of one actor or one “side”.



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