Brazil's Bolsonaro to appoint Moro to Supreme Court

Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro speaks during a ceremony where he signed a second decree that eases gun restrictions, during the signing ceremony at Planalto presidential palace in Brasilia, Brazil, Tuesday, May 7, 2019. The decree opens Brazil’s market to guns and ammunition made outside of Brazil according to a summary of the decree. Gun owners can now buy between 1,000 -5,000 rounds of ammunition per year depending on their license, up from 50 rounds. Lower-ranking military members can now carry guns after 10 years of service. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

RIO DE JANEIRO – Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro says he will nominate anti-corruption crusader Sergio Moro to the Supreme Court whenever there is an opening.

In an interview Sunday with Radio Bandeirantes, the president said: "The first opening there is I have this commitment to Moro. God willing, we will fulfill this commitment."

Moro is best known for leading prosecutions as a judge in the "Operation Car Wash" investigation, which has been Brazil's biggest corruption scandal ever. It has brought the jailing of former presidents and swaths of the country's political and business elite.

Moro is now justice minister in the Bolsonaro administration. That appointment drew criticism from some Brazilians, because Moro convicted former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of corruption, which kept him from running again in the election won by Bolsonaro.