Elon Musk is continuing to push back against a Brazilian judge who launched an investigation into the billionaire owner of social media platform X.
In the latest development of the feud between Musk and Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, Musk warned in a post on X late Monday that he will do a “full data dump” regarding claims that the justice “put his finger on the scale” to get Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (commonly referred to as Lula) elected in 2022. But Musk said he will only do that once all X employees are in a “safe place or otherwise not in a position of responsibility.” Without providing further details, Musk said X employees in Brazil “have been told they will be arrested.”
Musk had earlier referred to de Moraes as “the dictator of Brazil,” saying he “has Lula on a leash,” prompting further questioning from a member of Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies.
Over the weekend, Musk became the subject of two probes launched by de Moraes. The first is part of an ongoing investigation into the spread of fake news and threats against Supreme Court justices in the country — the so-called anti-democratic digital militias.
The other will look into whether the billionaire engaged in obstruction, criminal organization, and incitement after Musk said the platform would defy court orders to block certain accounts, referring to de Moraes’ requests as the “most draconian demands of any country on Earth!”
“The flagrant conduct of obstruction of Brazilian justice, incitement of crime, the public threat of disobedience of court orders and future lack of cooperation from the platform are facts that disrespect the sovereignty of Brazil,” de Moraes wrote in his decision Sunday, following Musk’s posts.
How did we get here?
X’s Global Government Affairs account shared Saturday that the platform had been “forced by court decisions to block certain popular accounts in Brazil” and that it would be threatened with daily fines if it did not comply. X said it did not believe the orders were in accordance with the constitution and that it will challenge the orders legally where possible.
Soon after, Musk said he would lift all restrictions imposed by the judge, despite facing “massive fines” and threats to arrest X employees and cut off access to the site in Brazil.
“As a result, we will probably lose all revenue in Brazil and have to shut down our office there,” Musk wrote Saturday. “But principles matter more than profit.”
In a series of posts the following day, Musk continued his tirade, accusing the judge of “aggressive censorship” and of violating Brazilian laws and the country’s constitution. He encouraged users based in Brazil to download virtual private networks (VPNs) to circumvent a potential shutdown of the social media platform. Musk also called for de Moraes’ resignation and impeachment.
This slew of posts prompted de Moraes’ investigations.
Another justice at Brazil’s top court reaffirmed de Moraes’ decision to launch the investigations, noting that “any and all companies operating in Brazil are subject to the Federal Constitution, the laws and decisions of the Brazilian authorities.”
Orlando Silva, a left-wing Brazilian lawmaker, said he would propose a “responsibilities regime for these digital platforms,” writing in a post on X that Musk disrespected the country’s judiciary and the situation had “reached the limit!”