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Braslia, Brazil: Brazil’s Supreme Court hit back Wednesday at criticism and threats by President Jair Bolsonaro, warning him against trying to violate its rulings and accusing him of an “attack on democracy.”
Bolsonaro has repeatedly hit out at the supreme court , which has ordered investigations of him and his clique , notably over accusations of systematically spreading fake news from within the govt .
The far-right leader upped his rhetoric at huge Independence Day rallies by his supporters Tuesday, vowing to not respect rulings by Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who has jailed several Bolsonaro allies and ordered the president investigated himself.
“The Supreme Court won’t tolerate threats to the authority of its decisions,” said Luiz Fux, judge of the 11-member court.
“Besides representing an attack on democracy, such an attitude constitutes a ‘crime of responsibility’,” he said — an impeachable offense.
Bolsonaro portrayed himself at Tuesday’s rallies because the victim of hostile supreme court judges and electoral authorities, whom he accuses of attacking him and blocking his agenda.
Hardline supporters urged the military to intervene against the opposite branches of state to offer Bolsonaro unfettered power, and therefore the president himself warned of ominous “consequences” if the Supreme Court stood in his way.
“This court will never accept threats to its independence,” Fux shot back.
“No one will close this court.”
Bolsonaro sought to flex his political muscle with Tuesday’s rallies, at a time when polls place him on target to lose Brazil’s October 2022 elections to leftist ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
Firing up his supporters with vows to defend their “freedom,” he railed against the supreme court and renewed his attacks on Brazil’s electronic electoral system , which he insists — without evidence — is suffering from fraud.
