Brazil’s One-Man Censor May Decide Vote for President -

BRAZIL’S ONE-MAN CENSOR MAY DECIDE VOTE. Brazilian authorities have given one man sole authority to order removal of posts about the election. Who did they choose? Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes. Already he is fighting for a controversial increase of authority for his court. Already he has ordered investigations of presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro. And he has jailed some of Bolsanaro’s supporter for “attacks on the nation’s democratic institutions.”

What greater attack on democracy can they make than choosing a candidate’s clear enemy as censor?

Once behind, Bolsonaro has drawn even in the polls and momentum is carrying him ahead. So just at this moment, days before the Oct. 30 election, they pull this naked power grab.

Now de Moraes has the sole power to order the takedown of posts from social networks. They must comply within two days or face takedown of their entire networks in Brazil.

Civil-right experts as well as Bolsonaro’s supporters are loudly crying foul. They can point out that the current electoral court has acted even-handedly. For example, they banned posts for calling Bolsonaro a pedophile and for calling his opponent corrupt. Even though his opponent, Lula da Silva, did spend time in prison for corruption charges later dropped.

Pray that this new and horrible precedent utterly fails. And that voters around the world repudiate such brazen, tyrannical tactics to manipulate democracy.

Photo by Isac Nóbrega-PR