By Indianara Goz
The editorial boards of the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post, two of the most influential newspapers in the United States, have published harsh editorials against Brazil's Supreme Federal Court (STF), Justice Alexandre de Moraes and the treatment of Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, putting the government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva at the center of the crisis. These are not isolated columnists: editorials are the official voice of each paper.
Wall Street Journal: "Lula chose the target and promised to find the crime"
In an editorial published on October 28, the Wall Street Journal says Flávio Bolsonaro, son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, became a target of political persecution right after losing the election, and that the rule of law in Brazil is at risk. The paper notes that "winners are expected to be magnanimous toward the defeated in politics", and argues that in Brazil the opposite happened.
According to the editorial, minutes after Lula's victory came an order for Flávio to hand over his passport, and Moraes approved a Federal Police (PF) request to seize documents. Flávio, who has not been formally charged with any crime, left the country and arrived in Miami; the United States granted visas to his family. The paper also recalls that, during a debate, Lula said Flávio would face investigations after losing his parliamentary immunity.
The editorial's conclusion: "Lula chose the target and promised to find the crime." The WSJ also criticizes the conviction of Jair Bolsonaro, voted with the support of Cristiano Zanin, Lula's former lawyer, and Flávio Dino, Lula's former justice minister, and highlights the 452-page dissenting vote of Justice Luiz Fux.
Washington Post: "When judges become prosecutors"
The Washington Post took the same line, under a blunt headline: "When judges become prosecutors." The paper argues that losing an election should not lead candidates to flee their countries, and points to the reason: the extraordinary powers accumulated by Brazil's judiciary.
The core of its criticism is the so-called fake news inquiry, opened by the STF itself in 2019, which Moraes used for seven years to order searches, arrests, account blocks and the removal of people from social media. For the Post, this has moved from "rule of law" to "rule by law": the use of legal instruments to exercise unlimited power. The editorial also warns investors that the more discretionary the Supreme Court, the greater the political risk of investing in Brazil.
The Post further recalls that Lula was convicted of corruption and jailed in a case later annulled by the STF itself. It criticizes Flávio Dino's decision to order the PF to investigate the Rockbridge Network, a donor group co-founded by US Vice President JD Vance, based on a complaint by the Workers' Party (PT). According to the paper, this "does not inspire confidence in claims of judicial independence."
Pressure on Moraes is growing in Brazil
The editorials arrive at a difficult moment for Moraes. In September, STF president Edson Fachin removed him as rapporteur of the fake news inquiry, after the leak of messages between Moraes and Daniel Vorcaro, owner of Banco Master. Fachin is now reportedly preparing the definitive end of that investigation.
At the same time, the Federal Police removed the two investigators handling the Master case, who had identified more than 300 interactions between Vorcaro and Moraes. The Wall Street Journal itself points to a way forward: it will fall to Brazil's new Senate to defend the integrity and independence of the judiciary.
Why it matters
The STF is Brazil's highest court, and Moraes has been one of its most powerful and controversial members. Criticism from the editorial pages of two major US newspapers puts international attention on the Brazilian judiciary's powers, on the case of the Bolsonaro family, and on the political and investment climate under Lula.
VDD Analysis
When the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post, papers that rarely agree on anything, say the same thing about Brazil, the mask has fallen. Moraes lost the inquiry that sustained his power, is surrounded by the Banco Master scandal and is now exposed before the whole world. Lula, who promised to find a crime for his opponent, sees his government associated with political persecution in some of the most-read pages on the planet. International pressure, wear and tear inside the Supreme Court itself and a renewed Senate make up the combination that could bring both men down. Flávio is not a fugitive: he is a political persecuted figure, and now the world knows it.
