House Judiciary to Investigate Brazil’s Interest in X

(RightWing.org) – Elon Musk has been somewhat of a controversial figure, but really threw himself into the spotlight when he purchased Twitter, eventually renaming it X, for $44 billion. He’s not shy on the platform either, willing to engage in back-and-forth with all types of users on the platform, and sticking to his beliefs. Recently, though, he engaged with the Brazilian Government over free speech, and now Congress is involved.

What Happened?

Earlier this month, Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes targeted Elon Musk, ordering an investigation into X for dissemination of fake news. Musk is accused of intentionally criminalizing X as part of a network of people known as digital militias. These militias allegedly spread fake news that’s defamatory in nature, and issue threats against Supreme Court justices.

When Musk said he wouldn’t comply with the Court’s orders to block certain accounts that were allegedly spreading fake news, the justice opened a separate probe into him for alleged obstruction. That led Musk to accuse de Moraes of violating the Brazilian Constitution and suppressing free speech. He wrote on X, “These are the most draconian demands of any country on Earth!”

Musk has continued posting on his platform about the perceived injustices the Brazilian Supreme Court has engaged in, including raids on several social media users it tried to censor. He even said he would advise blocked users to use a Virtual Private Network, VPN, to get around censorship.

This isn’t the first time de Moraes targeted a platform, either. In March 2022, he ordered a shutdown of Telegram in the country, claiming it repeatedly ignored requests from the country’s authorities to block profiles and provide information on a specific user. That lasted less than 48 hours.

House Judiciary Investigation

Now, the House of Representatives, particularly the House Judiciary Committee, is getting involved in the battle. It has subpoenaed X Corp. and asked it to provide information on what the Brazilian Supreme Court has demanded in terms of censorship orders. It’s questioning whether the country’s judiciary is overreaching in its attacks on X.

In a press release, the committee noted that on April 17, it released a report titled “The Attack on Free Speech Abroad and the Biden Administration’s Silence: The Case of Brazil.” It details how censorship abroad is a real concern for America, especially with the Biden Administration’s attempts to censor users.

The House Public Security Committee, in a symbolic move, approved a motion on Tuesday, April 9, to support Musk for reportedly “exposing and confronting the political and unfounded censorship.”