World / Jair Bolsonaro Bolsonaro Waging War on ... Bic Pens Amid feud with Macron, Brazil president says he'll stop using pen 'because it is French' By Polly Davis Doig, Newser Staff Posted Sep 1, 2019 8:00 AM CDT Copied Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro makes a signal with his hand during a military ceremony for the Day of the Soldier, at Army Headquarters in Brasilia, Brazil, Friday, Aug. 23, 2019. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) The US-China trade war might be grabbing most headlines, but things just got serious in the spat between Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and French counterpart Emmanuel Macron. "A pen (of the Brazilian brand) Compactor and no more Bic, will work," said Bolsonaro in announcing that he's going to stop using Bic "because it is French." The AFP felt it necessary to inquire whether Bolsonaro was joking, and got no response from his office. Bic similarly had no comment, other than to say that it was "flattered" to be seen as a "democratic brand." (More Jair Bolsonaro stories.) Report an error