Milei, a right-wing libertarian, may not have been an obvious choice as the first world leader to meet with the president-elect donald trump after his electoral victory. However, there it was, Mar-a-Lago, Floridalast month, receiving praise from Trump.
“The work you’ve done is incredible,” Trump told Milei at a gala for a right-wing research institute. “You have done a fantastic job in a very short period of time.”
Many Argentines seem to agree. One year after taking office, Milei is viewed favorably by around 56 percent of Argentinesaccording to a recent survey, making him one of the most popular presidents in the country’s recent history.
“This is the president that God brought for the Argentines,” said Marcelo Capobianco54 years old, butcher in Buenos Aires. “It brought back hope.”
Although a wave of brutal cuts in everything from soup kitchens to bus fare subsidies, has plunged more than five million Argentines into poverty, it has also helped Milei make notable progress in a daunting task: curbing the rate highest inflation in the world.
Before Milei became president, monthly inflation was 12.8 percent; it is now 2.4 percent, the lowest in four years.
Milei has kept his bold promises to control the budget from Argentina, dlaying off more than 30,000 public employees and applying deep cuts to spending on health, social assistance and education.
Before he took office, Milei’s critics wondered whether a former television commentator, who describes himself as a anarchocapitalistcould get Argentina out of decades of crisis.
In some ways, their concerns have been confirmed. Milei’s unorthodox government strategy has plunged Argentina into a chaotic new chapterin which Poverty rates have skyrocketed and people have taken to the streets to protest.
“Every day we have more people to eat”said Margarita Barrientos63, who runs a soup kitchen in a working-class neighborhood in Buenos Aires.
But there are also indications that Milei’s strategy is working. In addition to the inflation collapsethe public income exceeds expenses for the first time in 16 years and preliminary data suggests that the economyafter contracting for three consecutive quarters, is stabilizing and could be in the process of starting to grow slowly.
“Happy times are coming in Argentina,” Milei said this week during a speech to mark his first year in office. He promised “sustained growth” in 2025, promising that the country’s sacrifice “has not been in vain.”
Global investors have applauded Milei’s moves, with Bank of America declaring in a financial report that its “stabilization plan is working better than expected.”
He International Monetary Fund predicted that Argentina’s annual inflation could drop to a more manageable 45 percent in 2025, from a record high of 211 percent in 2023, and praised Milei for its “impressive progress.”
The figures of inflation of Argentina have sometimes been questioned after previous governments were caught fudging the numbers. But the national statistics body was reviewed in 2015, so today the figures are considered credible and in line with independent estimates.
But for many ordinary Argentines, he triage Milei’s economic situation has been painful. Your government has cut public spending by about a third, removing price controls and subsidies that made public transport, heating bills and food cheaper, leaving more people struggling to make ends meet.
However, many see a positive side in austerity measures of the government.
Miguel Valderramawho has a small market in Buenos Aires, said he was relieved to no longer have to endure the uncontrolled inflation that defined daily life before Milei’s presidency.
“It was a price, they brought me the products from the warehouse, at noon I changed everything again, I raised everything again. And two days later, it went up again,” said Valderrama, 40, who voted for Milei.
Now, with a greater stabilityyou can plan your inventory without worrying about sudden price shocks. “Before,” he said, “we didn’t know how much money we were going to spend, how much it was going to cost.”
Milei’s rise to power came after decades of boom and bust cycles. Argentina was one of the richest countries in the world, but years of government mismanagement emptied its public coffers, caused multiple defaults on tens of billions of dollars in international loans and left the economy limping.
“Argentina stopped growing in 2012,” he said Marina Dal Poggettoexecutive director of EcoGo, a consulting firm based in Argentina.
Milei, presenting himself as an outsider, blamed Argentina’s economic problems on the corrupt politicians who spent recklessly, and described his political opponents as “thieves” who live like “monarchs.”
He warned that if he were elected president, things would most likely get worse before they got better. Even so, His promises attracted many Argentines eager for change.
Milei’s most radical plans as a candidate included the closure of the central bank of Argentina and the abandonment of the peso in favor of the US dollar. But once in power, he did neither one nor the otherand their policies have been much less drastic than many expected.
“The guidelines of Milei’s initial program were much more reasonable than the campaign speech,” Dal Poggetto said. “They were pragmatic, very pragmatic.”
However, Milei’s work to address the country’s long-standing financial problems has enraged to many Argentines, causing great demonstrations for the pension cuts, rising prices and cutting university budgets.
Roberto Bejeranoa 68-year-old retired taxi driver, said he could only afford what was strictly necessary with his monthly pension and had to give up small pleasures like going out to dinner and buying books.
“They are laughing in our faces when they say we are better” thanks to the government’s harsh economic medicine, Bejerano said. “You don’t see it in your pocket.”
He said he was concerned that Milei “has so much popularity when there are many of us who are suffering.”
Outside Argentina, Milei’s economic policies and aggressive style have raised his international profile. He has mercilessly mocked the ideology woke up and has attacked his critics on social media, calling them “socialists.” His brash style and unruly hair often draw comparisons to Trump.
Milei, in fact, has frequently expressed her admiration for Trump, cheering his “formidable election victory” on social media.
The feeling appears to be mutual. “You are my favorite president”Trump told Milei during a phone call last month, according to a spokesman for the Argentine president. Two Trump spokespeople did not respond to requests for comment.
Echoing Trump’s slogan, Milei has promised to “make Argentina great again.”
Elon Muskwho will help lead a new agency dedicated to reducing the size and spending of the American government, has also praised Milei. “Impressive progress in Argentina!” Musk said in X, sharing a long podcast in which Milei was one of the guests and bragged about her achievements.
Vivek Ramaswamywho will help Musk run the new agency, reflected that “Milei-style cuts on steroids” could offer “a reasonable formula for fixing the US government.”
But meanwhile, in Argentina, Barrientos, the director of the soup kitchen, said that Milei’s government had inflicted too much suffering.
The country’s poverty rate rose to 53 percent from 40 percent in the first six months of the year, according to government figures.
“This moment is like we have no future,” Barrientos said, adding that “There are governments that are insensitive to the need, like this government.”
Many Argentines have cut spending on basic products such as milk and bread. He beef consumption in Argentina, one of the world’s leading meat exporters, has fallen to its lowest level in 28 years.
Some analysts warned that Milei’s financial policies, including exchange rate controls, had helped prop up the peso but were making Argentine exports such as metals, soybeans and beef less competitive.
Critics also warned that Milei’s aggressive cuts could end up stifling growth. Less investment in universities, research centers and hospitals could “weaken Argentina’s social and economic base in the long term,” he said. Martin Kalosdirector of EPyCA Consultores, an economic consulting firm.
Still, experts say Milei has managed to accomplish the most pressing task: avoiding a deeper inflationary spiral. And, for now, many Argentines seem willing to give it time Milei to continue with its profound economic changes.
“People feel that there are certain things that had to be done,” said Mariel Fornoni, a political analyst who runs Management and Fit, a polling company. “Then there is how much the pocket can hold.”
(Daniel Politi and Lucía Cholakian Herrera reported from Buenos Aires, and Ana Ionova from Rio de Janeiro).
The New York Times
Source: Ambito
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