What happened
Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes on Sunday opened an inquiry into tech billionaire Elon Musk, saying the X owner was waging a public “disinformation campaign” after refusing to comply with a court order to block certain accounts.
Who said what
Musk has engaged in the “obstruction of Brazilian justice” and “disrespect” for the country’s sovereignty, Moraes said. One day earlier, Musk predicted X would “probably lose all revenue in Brazil and have to shut down our office there.”
The commentary
Musk’s defiance has been “met with both delight and anger by politicians, lawyers and other public figures in Brazil,” The Wall Street Journal said. Over the weekend Brazilian Attorney General Jorge Messias lashed out at “billionaires domiciled abroad” who “show themselves willing to violate the rule of law.”
What next?
X “had yet to act” on Musk’s pledges late on Sunday, MarketWatch said, but if the platform does unblock proscribed accounts it will face a fine of $20,000 per account per day.