The United States House of Representatives, through its Judiciary Committee and the Select Subcommittee on the Instrumentalization of the Federal Government, both led by Republican Representative Jim Jordan, will investigate the FBI’s possible involvement in censorship cases resulting from lawsuits against critics and journalists in Brazil, especially those on the right.
In a document sent this Tuesday (21) to FBI director Christopher Wray, the Judiciary Committee demands clarification on reports that indicate the FBI’s alleged collaboration with actions taking place in Brazil that limit freedom of expression.
The document, signed by Jim Jordan, describes a situation in which the FBI, at the request of the Brazilian government, would have cooperated to monitor and potentially censor individuals residing in the United States. The document also mentions another case in which the American federal agency had already collaborated with Ukrainian intelligence to flag accounts of US citizens on social media.
“In Brazil, press outlets recently reported that the FBI, on behalf of the Brazilian government, contacted two US residents, including a journalist targeted by some of the Brazilian courts’ censorship orders,” the document states.
“The Committee and Select Subcommittee on the Instrumentalization of the Federal Government previously discovered how the FBI worked with a foreign government to facilitate the censorship of speech by Americans. For example, in 2022, the FBI, at the request of a Ukrainian intelligence agency, flagged authentic American accounts to American social media companies, including a verified US State Department account and accounts belonging to American journalists,” it adds.
The Committee highlights that such actions raise concerns about the possibility that the FBI is cooperating with censorship actions that are promoted by foreign governments against citizens residing in the United States.
“The recent contact (with US residents, at the request of the Brazilian government) raises concerns about whether the FBI is again helping to facilitate a foreign government’s censorship efforts. Freedom of expression, including freedom of expression on digital platforms , is a fundamental and necessary part of democratic and fair societies”, says an excerpt from the document.
To understand the nature and extent of the FBI’s interactions with Brazilian authorities in connection with its efforts to censor critics, and to obtain evidence that may assist the Subcommittee on Instrumentalization of the Federal Government in its ongoing investigation into the actions of the administration of Joe Biden, Jordan requested that the FBI deliver to the Judiciary Committee by June 4th a series of documents and exchanges of communications related to conversations between the FBI and authorities in Brazil.
The Committee requested “All documents and communications between FBI personnel, including but not limited to the FBI Legal Attache in Brazil, FBI Headquarters, and the FBI Miami Field Office, pertaining to or relating to orders, demands or orders from the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) in Brazil or the Federal Supreme Court in relation to the suspension or removal of accounts on X. Rumble or any other social media platform.”
Jordan also requested “All documents and communications between the FBI and (U.S.) Executive Branch agencies, including the Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Brazil, related to orders, demands or warrants from the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) in Brazil or the Federal Supreme Court regarding the suspension or removal of accounts on X, Rumble or any other social media platform” and “All documents and communications between the FBI and the government of Brazil related to orders, demands or warrants from the Court Superior Electoral Court (TSE) in Brazil or the Federal Supreme Court regarding the suspension or removal of accounts on X, Rumble or any other social media platform.”
The new request from the American Congress is yet another development of the cases involving right-wing censorship in Brazil, revealed by Twitter Files Brasil, a series of reports released and developed by journalists Michael Shellenberger, David Ágape and Eli Vieira, from People’s Gazette.
Commenting on the Committee’s new action on X (formerly Twitter), journalist Michael Shellenberger said that “most Americans think that Brazil is a liberal democracy, but it is not. President Lula is cracking down on free speech, and a crooked Supreme Court judge named Alexandre de Moraes is demanding that social media platforms ban journalists and politicians he doesn’t like. But now, thanks to Twitter Files Brasil, everyone can see the criminal censorship of Lula and Moraes, and the US Congress demands answers from the FBI about its role in Brazil’s campaign towards totalitarianism. Thank you Jim Jordan.”