Javier Milei's 'suicidal' plans 'won't see light of day' as opponents in Argentina circle
Argentina's new president has proposed radical policies, such as the "dollarization" of the economy. But experts say his plans will likely be blocked by his opponents.
President-elect of Argentina, Javier Milei, could see his radical economic policies thwarted by his opponents after his shock election win earlier this week.
Milei was an outsider in the vote, and has divided opinion with his views which have been described as "far-right" and "anarcho-capitalist."
He takes power in Argentina at a time when the country is in the midst of an economic crisis.
Among his economic proposals, Milei has proposed cutting welfare payments and discontinuing numerous government departments, including the ministries of culture, women, health and education, among others.
Perhaps his most radical plan is to ditch the Argentine currency and undergo a process of "dollarization".
READ MORE: South America’s oldest, largest predator found in 265-million-year-old fossil
Speaking to the New Yorker, various experts have expressed concern about Milei's plan.
Michael Stott, the Latin America editor of the Financial Times, has warned that the president-elect's proposals are "unlikely to see the light of day, at least in the short term".
He added that Mieli has a weak position in the Argentine legislature, which means his plans could easily be stopped by opposition figures.
Mark Weisbrot, a Latin America expert at the Washington-based Center for Economic and Policy Research, a progressive think tank, has also said that “a crazed, economically suicidal approach would only make things worse—and as Argentina has experienced, things can get a lot worse”.
Mark Sobel, a former senior official at the US Treasury Department and a former US representative at the IMF, has said of Milei's economic policies: “It could sow the seeds for a huge contraction and crash while deflecting attention from the tough work of fixing the economy.”
Alejandro Werner, a former senior official at the International Monetary Fund, told Bloomberg earlier this year that Dollarization in Argentina wouldn't work as the country does not have enough Dollars to carry out the plan.
He said: “Dollarizing without dollars is like saying you want the entire population to wear Nike sneakers, even though you don’t make them and you don’t have the resources to buy them."
Milei, in an interview with the Economist, addressed this problem.
He said: “If someone comes and gives me the $30billion in cash, I can solve it in one day. If they don’t give me the $30billion cash, I won’t solve it in one day.”
Follow our social media accounts here on facebook.com/ExpressUSNews and @expressusnews
