This development is just a small step after X Twitter, a leading publisher of racist disinformation and hate speech, refused to follow public safety laws in Brazil.

Earlier this year, Moraes opened a criminal inquiry into Elon Musk after X’s owner said he would defy a court order by lifting restrictions on designated accounts. Then the company seemed to reverse course and said it would block the accounts after all.

Once criminal investigation was on the table, Musk’s brand of loud and extreme anti-democratic political rhetoric faced real accountability. X Twitter management thus seems to be attempting to protect vulnerable disinformation troops involved in the Brazil operation, using a retreat probably because they know their CEO is so deep in the wrong.

You may remember in April that the X Twitter team in Brazil had tried to play dumb when it told the Supreme Court some “operational faults” were to be blamed, instead of admitting Elon Musk wants toxic users to remain active despite court orders that they be blocked. Simply put, Musk believes he is the law, maybe even above the law. He’s now on the run to avoid it.