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While Bolsonaro’s motives are obvious, Musk’s are perhaps
less so. Bolsonaro has always been a reactionary agitator uncommitted to
civility and constructive democratic engagement. He might even believe that if
he can sufficiently muddy the waters of Brazilian democracy, he can push the
courts to overturn his ban on seeking elected office. Musk’s right-wing
turn, while in the making for a long time, has only become extremely pronounced in
the past few years. His tweets are riddled with pejorative references to “woke”
culture that resonate with a right-wing base trained to abhor political
correctness, and he has dabbled in antisemitic conspiracy theories and
re-platformed some of the most vile, hateful people in America. 

He insists this is his prerogative in Brazil too, where some 40
million people—or about 18 percent of the population in Brazil—access X at
least once a month. Earlier this month, in response to a court order demanding
that X block an undisclosed number of accounts or face heavy daily fines, Musk
made clear that he would not only ignore the ruling, which he called “aggressive censorship,” but lift restrictions on
previously suspended Brazilian accounts. He also urged Brazilians to resist
Moraes, whom he referred to as a “dictator” holding Lula “on a leash,” and
suggested both were part of some corrupt bargain of political self-protection.
The spat temporarily called into question whether Starlink, Musk’s satellite
internet company, would continue to operate in Brazil, where it has facilitated
illegal mining and logging operations. During a speech at the site of the
future Museum of Democracy in Rio de Janeiro on April 19, Moraes subtly jabbed
Musk by noting that the country’s justice system is used  “to fighting foreign mercantilists who treat
Brazil as a colony, as well as extremist and antidemocratic politicians who
prefer to subjugate themselves to international interests.” By that point, X in
Brazil had quietly reversed itself, signaling
it would abide by all judicial orders even as Musk escalated his online attacks
against Moraes. 

Musk most likely identifies with the trollish, macho
authoritarianism that is the stock-in-trade of bolsonarismo and doesn’t
like the idea of the Brazilian government restricting his company in any way.  There is nothing high-minded about his
position. “Mr. Musk is not a moral reference for defending freedom of
expression,” Paulo Abrão, the executive director of the Washington Brazil
Office, told me, adding that “X executes numerous content removal orders around
the world and Musk himself does not criticize dictatorial governments when his
economic interests take precedence. His positions on Brazil are biased and are
being used as a smokescreen for his business interests in the country.” The basic
problem for X is that the limits placed on its operations in Brazil are in
accordance with local law, not the jurisprudence Musk carries around in his
head.