🇺🇸🇺🇸❗️🇧🇷🤡 — U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is
considering imposing trade tariffs on Brazil and other countries that, according to allies, are
using the judicial system to persecute political opponents, according to information released by the Wall Street Journal
🇧🇷 According to the WSJ, this move comes after the former president Jair Bolsonaro was prevented from traveling to the United States to attend Trump’s inauguration. Bolsonaro had his passport seized in February 2024 by a decision from Supreme Federal Court (STF) Justice Alexandre de Moraes, within the framework of Operation Tempus Veritatis, which investigates alleged plans for a coup and other accusations.
⚖️ The WSJ, citing sources close to Trump’s team, states that the lack of a decision from the STF on whether or not to authorize Bolsonaro’s trip to Washington could worsen the already fragile relations between the Lula government and the incoming U.S. administration. “The worst way for the Lula government to start its relationship with the Trump administration is to instrumentalize the government against a political opponent.”
🤝 Trump, who the American newspaper also reports identifies himself as a victim of judicial persecution in the United States, sees similarities between his situation and Bolsonaro’s. As a result, people close to the Republican indicated that he is willing to use trade tariffs as a means of pressuring governments around the world that adopt what is called “lawfare” — the use of the judicial system to persecute political rivals.
❌ The WSJ notes that relations between Brazil and the U.S. were already under tension due to actions by the STF against 𝕏, alleging that it is combating “hate speech,” and cites Elon Musk, who is now part of the new Trump administration’s team, as having strongly criticized Justice Moraes, calling him a “dictator.”
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