Brazil Attorney General Condemns Alleged US Funding Plot Targeting Supreme Court as Foreign Meddling

Brazil’s attorney general has issued a stark warning against external interference in the nation’s democratic institutions, labeling it “unacceptable,” following revelations that the Trump administration sought to channel funds toward a campaign aimed at Brazil’s supreme court.

Writing on X, Jorge Messias described the disclosure as a critical warning regarding Brazilian sovereignty. He noted the gravity of the information given the ongoing electoral cycle and recent instances of outside pressure directed at national institutions.

Voting occurs in three days, with the US reportedly accused of attempting to sway the result. Incumbent leftist Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is locked in a tight race against his right-wing opponent and Trump ally, Flávio Bolsonaro.

Brazilian broadcaster GloboNews reported that the attorney general’s office lodged a criminal complaint on Thursday to probe potential misconduct tied to the report.

In a prior escalation last year, the Trump administration deployed sanctions and tariffs in an unsuccessful bid to coerce Lula’s administration and the judiciary regarding the coup trial of former president Jair Bolsonaro. While Trump dismissed the prosecution as a witch-hunt, Jair Bolsonaro was ultimately convicted and sentenced to 27 years in prison for his role in the failed power seizure following the 2022 election loss.

Over the past few months, allegations of US interference have resurfaced, with reports suggesting Washington utilized tariffs and classified two Brazilian criminal organizations as foreign terrorists to aid Flávio Bolsonaro’s bid while undermining Lula.

Messias emphasized that inter-governmental friction is normal, but foreign political agendas attempting to shape domestic institutions or influence the choices of the Brazilian electorate are not.

He added that Brazilians hold the right to determine their own future and secure institutions for coming generations, rejecting any external imposition of decisions made outside the country.

The remarks followed details of a Trump administration push to allocate over $175m from the State Department’s primary human rights fund. Proposed allocations included a $40m grant for an anti-communism initiative, backing for a South African Afrikaner rights group, and the aforementioned campaign against the supreme court.

One proposed $1m initiative, titled “Countering lawfare and censorship in Brazil,” would support civil society entities opposing what they characterize as judicial overreach and censorship by the high court.

The far-right faction views the supreme court, specifically Justice Alexandre de Moraes who presided over the former president’s trial, as its primary adversary.

Moraes is credited with foiling Jair Bolsonaro’s authoritarian efforts, which culminated in the January 8, 2023, riots in Brasília, although his methods have faced scrutiny regarding the limits of his constitutional power.

During the insurrection, Bolsonaro hardliners vandalized the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, with the supreme court suffering the heaviest losses.

Backers of Bolsonaro maintain that his incarceration is politically motivated and characterize the legal proceedings as a sham engineered by a corrupt judicial regime.

These grievances have gained traction due to a recent scandal involving several judges, including Moraes, connected to Daniel Vorcaro, a banker embroiled in Brazil’s largest financial fraud case. Vorcaro has also been associated with the Bolsonaro family.

Reports indicate the banker provided the family with over £9m, ostensibly to finance a biopic starring Jim Caviezel of The Passion of the Christ fame. Days before Vorcaro’s arrest last November, Flávio Bolsonaro sent him a message expressing solidarity.

Vorcaro remains detained in federal police custody in Brasília, with his defense team maintaining his innocence and denying any involvement in illegal conduct.

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