The Bald Eagle of Brazilian Justice: How Alexandre de Moraes’ Temper Tantrum Exposed Cracks in the STF’s Foundation
By Hotspotnews | November 17, 2025- Orlando FL-USA
In the hallowed halls of Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court (STF), where the nation’s democratic soul is supposed to be safeguarded, a fiery outburst last week has ignited a powder keg of controversy. Justice Alexandre de Moraes, the once-Bolsonaro ally turned implacable foe of the right, unleashed a tirade against fellow Justice André Mendonça during a plenary session on the January 8, 2023, riots. What started as a routine debate over evidence in the trials of riot participants devolved into a spectacle of judicial theater—one that conservatives across Brazil are hailing as a rare moment of accountability for a man who’s long wielded the gavel like a sledgehammer.
For those unfamiliar, the January 8 events—when thousands of Bolsonaro supporters stormed Brasília’s government buildings—remain a flashpoint in Brazil’s polarized politics. Over 1,400 arrests followed, with many still languishing in preventive detention amid accusations of a “coup attempt.” Moraes, as the lead investigator, has been the architect of this crackdown, ordering mass bans on social media accounts, platform shutdowns, and relentless prosecutions. To his defenders, he’s a bulwark against extremism. To critics—and there are legions on the right—he’s an overreaching inquisitor, more prosecutor than judge, whose zeal has eroded the very rule of law he claims to protect.
The November 14 session was meant to judge the fates of dozens of defendants, but it quickly became a referendum on Moraes’ methods. Enter Justice Mendonça, the evangelical pastor and former Attorney General appointed by Bolsonaro himself. In a measured vote for acquittals or reduced sentences in select cases, Mendonça zeroed in on a glaring evidentiary hole: the “disappeared” videos from the Ministry of Justice (MJ) cameras on that fateful day. Why, he asked, had these crucial footages—potentially showing the full scope of the chaos, including any infiltrators or provocateurs—vanished into thin air? Fairness demands transparency, Mendonça argued. Just as the controversial July 2021 meeting between Bolsonaro and military brass was laid bare for public scrutiny, so too must the MJ tapes be disclosed. No assumptions of “coup” intent for every soul who wandered into the Senate for an hour without smashing a window.
Moraes’ response? A volcanic eruption. “An absurdity!” he bellowed, slamming his fist and pointing accusatorily. He accused Mendonça of minimizing the riots, ranting about imprisoned military leaders, a fleeing ex-Justice Minister Flávio Dino allegedly ditching his phone in the U.S., and a bizarre “government conspiracy against itself.” The bald justice—affectionately dubbed “the bald guy” in viral memes—repeatedly shouted, “Don’t put words in my mouth!” as if Mendonça had lobbed personal insults rather than procedural questions. It was less a defense of justice than a desperate deflection, leaving viewers stunned at the raw emotion from a man accustomed to cool, iron-fisted control.
This wasn’t just a bad day at the office; it was a microcosm of Moraes’ deeper mistakes—errors that have ruffled feathers from Brasília to the backroads of rural Brazil, where conservative voters see him as the embodiment of elite overreach. First, the selective amnesia on evidence. Conservatives have long pointed out the asymmetry: Left-wing protests, like those during Lula’s impeachment saga, faced kid-glove treatment, with no mass arrests or “coup” labels. Yet January 8? A full-throttle witch hunt, complete with withheld videos that might exonerate the merely curious from the truly culpable. By stonewalling disclosure, Moraes doesn’t just undermine trials; he fuels the very distrust he decries. If the goal is healing a divided nation, burying footage is gasoline on the fire.
Second, his authoritarian playbook has crossed into personal vendettas. Remember the 2024 showdown with Elon Musk? Moraes’ orders to censor X (formerly Twitter) led to temporary blocks of the platform in Brazil, sparking global outcry over free speech. It’s not hyperbole to say he’s blurred the lines between judiciary and executive, acting as investigator, judge, and enforcer in one. High-profile targets like Bolsonaro himself—barred from office and facing endless probes—feel the sting most acutely. And let’s not forget the human cost: Women with breastfeeding infants denied house arrest while Moraes preaches “democracy’s defense.” Contrast that with Mendonça’s recent compassionate ruling granting similar relief to a corruption suspect mother. It’s a stark reminder: Justice, in Moraes’ court, seems to bend for the ideologically pure but breaks for the politically inconvenient.
These missteps aren’t abstract; they’re eroding public faith in institutions. Polls show conservative Brazilians—Bolsonaro’s base—viewing the STF as a Lula-aligned cabal, with Moraes as its snarling enforcer. His feathers-ruffling antics? They alienate moderates too, who crave impartiality over indignation. When a justice interrupts a colleague mid-sentence, gesturing wildly like a talk-show host, it doesn’t inspire confidence—it invites impeachment whispers, already bubbling in Congress.
Yet amid the chaos, there’s a silver lining for conservatives: Moments like this expose the fragility of unchecked power. Mendonça’s poise stood in sharp relief to Moraes’ fury, a biblical shepherd schooling the secular storm. As Brazil hurtles toward the 2026 elections, this clash signals a potential shift. The right, long on the defensive, now has footage—not just of rioters, but of a justice unraveling under scrutiny. Will it lead to reforms, like mandatory evidence disclosure or term limits for STF investigators? One can hope.
In the end, Moraes’ outburst wasn’t just nervous bluster; it was a confession of vulnerability. The “farce,” as critics call it, isn’t in the January 8 trials—it’s in pretending Brazil’s judiciary can thrive on opacity and outrage. True conservatives, ever vigilant for liberty’s flame, will keep the pressure on. After all, in a democracy worth defending, no one’s above a fair fight—or a full video reel.