The tension between Elon Musk and Brazil heightened on Sunday when a Supreme Court judge initiated an investigation into the billionaire. This followed Musk's announcement of plans to reactivate accounts on the social media platform X that the judge had previously ordered to be blocked. Musk, who owns X and advocates for free speech, has contested Justice Alexandre de Moraes' decision to block certain accounts. He asserted that X, formerly Twitter, would lift all restrictions as he deemed them unconstitutional and urged Moraes to step down.
Details about the specific social media accounts subject to the blockage have not been disclosed by Musk, X, or Brazilian authorities. X initially informed about the blocking order on Saturday, but the timing of the issuance of the order remains unclear. Moraes is conducting an inquiry into "digital militias" accused of disseminating fake news and hateful content during the tenure of former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro. Additionally, he is leading an investigation into an alleged coup plot involving Bolsonaro.
Musk took to X on Saturday and accused Moraes of "brazenly and repeatedly" betraying the constitution and the people of Brazil. His tweet read, "This judge has applied massive fines, threatened to arrest our employees and cut off access to X in Brazil. As a result, we will probably lose all revenue in Brazil and have to shut down our office there. But principles matter more than profit."
In another tweet, he wrote, "Coming shortly, 𝕏 will publish everything demanded by @Alexandre and how those requests violate Brazilian law. This judge has brazenly and repeatedly betrayed the constitution and people of Brazil. He should resign or be impeached. Shame @Alexandre, shame."
A Legal Battle Lies Ahead?
The billionaire has vowed to legally contest the directive that blocks X accounts where feasible. In response, Moraes expanded his ongoing investigation into fake news on social media to include Musk and initiated an inquiry into what he termed an obstruction of justice. In his decision, Moraes said: "X shall refrain from disobeying any court order already issued, including performing any profile reactivation that has been blocked by this Supreme Court."
According to a statement issued to the media, if X fails to adhere to the directive to block specific accounts, the company will face a daily fine of 100,000 reais ($19,740). President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's leftist administration has expressed solidarity with Moraes, with Solicitor General Jorge Messias criticizing Musk and advocating for the regulation of social media platforms to prevent foreign entities from violating Brazilian laws. Messias in a tweet said, "We cannot live in a society in which billionaires domiciled abroad have control of social networks and put themselves in a position to violate the rule of law, failing to comply with court orders and threatening our authorities."