Brazil attorney general says meddling ‘cannot be tolerated’ after Trump funding plans revealed

Brazil's attorney general, Jorge Messias, has declared that foreign meddling in the country's institutions and democracy "cannot be tolerated" following a Guardian report. The report exposed how the Trump administration aimed to direct funds to campaign against Brazil's supreme court. The information was deemed particularly serious in light of Brazil's upcoming presidential election, where incumbent Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva faces his far-right rival, Flávio Bolsonaro.

Both candidates are currently tied in the polls. The Brazilian attorney general's office filed a criminal complaint on Thursday to investigate potential wrongdoing in response to the Guardian story. Last year, the Trump administration employed sanctions and tariffs in an unsuccessful attempt to pressure Lula's government and the supreme court over the coup trial of Bolsonaro's father, former President Jair Bolsonaro, who was convicted for attempting to seize power following the 2022 election loss to Lula.

In recent months, the Trump administration has been accused of meddling in Brazilian affairs by using tariffs and designating two Brazilian organized crime groups as foreign terrorist organizations to bolster Flávio Bolsonaro's campaign and undermine Lula. Messias emphasized that while disagreements between governments are common in international relations, foreign political interests interfering in the functioning of Brazilian institutions or influencing choices solely belonging to the Brazilian people are not to be tolerated.