Budget 2025. Milei made a show with a small audience in Congress to reaffirm the adjustment

With few details and definitions on the specific proposal for the 2025 budget, Milei repeated her classic phrases this Sunday in CongressHe prepared a national broadcast and opened the Chamber of Deputies to put on a show that left a bad taste in the mouth. Only 120 of the 257 deputies participated. There were more officials and fans in the boxes than legislators.

This is how the enclosure looks at the entrance of Milei pic.twitter.com/DUFQN8YsvE

— Jesica Calcagno (@Jesi_mc) September 16, 2024

It looked more like a campaign event that the presentation of the government’s “road map” that means the budget. The atmosphere in the room was festive between the legislators of La Libertad Avanza and the officials. Laughter and selfies everywhereInstagram lives (like the one made by the deputy Romina Diez), fans in the boxes to mark the pulse of the applause and shouts of support. Luis Caputo was one of those who starred in “the selfie moment”.

Toto Caputo’s selfie moment pic.twitter.com/BThsAJFw2X

— Jesica Calcagno (@Jesi_mc) September 15, 2024

Milei spoke from a lectern, escorted by Martin Menem and Victoria Villarruel who were supported by the deputy José Luis Espert and the senator Atauche of the ruling party, and the minister of economy Luis Caputo.

He PRO was camouflaged with Freedom Advances. He participated with the largest group, a little less than 30 deputies, including Ritondo, Lospennato, Vidal, Giudici, Santilli, Arabia. The yellow party was one of the few that participated with senators: Luis Juez, De Angeli and Alvarez Rivero. They joined in the applause at various points in Milei’s speech. At the end, in the corridors Ritondothe president of the bloc, showed As a trophy the president gave him the speech papers. For the treatment of the budget, they will be a key and decisive block for the ruling party.

On the opposition side, the climate was different. Absences prevailed.leaving more than half of the room empty. From the opposition blocks, the deputies of the Left Front left its 5 seats empty As they had already anticipated “We are not going to attend an event of this tightening and repressive government” they warned.

In the case of Union for the Homeland, participated with around 20 deputies and deputies and no senator. German Martinezpresident of the bloc, He shouted at Milei “speak without reading” at one point in the speech. It was one of the few moments when the president actually went off script and answered that “You add with difficulty”. Among the Peronist delegation were Valdés, Hagman, Tolosa Paz, Marino, Heller, Ginocchio.

Los Dialogue blocks with the government participated with delegations. The UCR with a little more than 15: all the wings participated except Manes and JulianoThe delegation included Rodrigo De Loredo, Karina Banfi, Martín Tetaz, Danya Tavela, the Mendoza natives Verasay and Nieri, Reyes, and 4 of the “libertarian radicals” (Campero, Cervi, Picat, Arjol). Monti, a key bishop of Governor Cornejo, was one of the most applauded of the block. Tucuman Campero, who defended the veto against retirees, approached to greet Milei at the end of the speech.

The Civic Coalition, Federal Innovation and Pichetto’s bloc They had a sober participation: no applause, no shouting. They just sat and listened. There were also several absences and they went with delegations.

“First see how much we have to save, then see how much we can spend” Javier Milei said in one of the few parts of the speech where he referred more specifically to the budget. He proposed a “change of logic” in how it had been drawn up with the different governments. That is the dynamic that worries the governorswho are already being affected by budget cuts and know that more may come.

Without going any further, some of the UCR deputies who reversed their veto of pensions to support Milei are now evaluating what they will do with the law on financing universities in accordance with what the budget for universities proposes.

There were no governors but the event was attended by the staff of officials of the government. In addition to the Minister of Economy, who was placed in the center, on the sides were Manuel Adorni, Karina Milei, Patricia Bullrich, Federico Sturzenegger, Guillermo Francos, Luis Petri, and Mariano Cúneo Libarona. Advisor Santiago Caputo, a member of the Iron Triangle, was absent.

Milei’s show is over. Now La Libertad Avanza will have to face the difficult task of negotiating the budgetand get the support to approve it. Although in the hall, the Mileista fans chanted “the caste is afraid”, the government and the president will negotiate again with the caste to deepen the adjustment against workers, retirees, education, health and medicines. And if there is something that unites Milei with the governments of Macri and Fernández is that the payment of the IMF debt will be a priority. That is the legacy that cannot be touched.