Brazil's ruling party senate leader resigned and declared the government of unelected president Michel Temer to be "discredited" hours after the Supreme Court requested the legislature put Temer on trial for corruption.

"I have no vocation to be a puppet," said Renan Calheiros, suggesting bitter power struggles going on behind the scenes, and distancing himself from Temer before next year's elections.  The center-right ruling party has enough votes to block impeaching Temer, but support for that idea is drying up as public disgust grows.

The Attorney General this week charged Temer with allegedly accepting millions of dollars in bribes from the meat-packing company JBS.  The company's head has reached a plea deal with prosecutors.  Both men were recorded conspiring to obstruct justice by discussing the payment of hush money to disgraced former House Speaker Eduardo Cunha, a former friend of Temer who was jailed on separate corruption charges.

Temer's approval rating has plunged to just seven percent, fueled by the corruption probe and Temer's deeply loathed austerity program.  Brazil's Federal Police announced that "a dearth of funds" would make it impossible to issue any new passports after Tuesday.  The government will debate emergency funds for travel documents later this week.

One of the country's top prosecutors says Temer and his allies are cutting funds for the Federal Police because it is the lead agency investigating the corruption probe.  "Who wins with this? The investigative team has been reduced," asked Carlos Lima.

Temer took office last year, appointed by members of his party in congress after democratically-elected President Dilma Rousseff was impeached for an accounting irregularity that isn't a crime.