As the U.S. government shutdown heads into its second week, there’s a shocking revelation that our current regime seems to be doing more to prop up the Argentine economy, and its government, than resolving our budget impasse. What gives? This is worse than just one bailout (it’s the second this year), a deal that hurts our farmers as well, as you’ll see in this column.

Argentina’s President Javier Milei was elected in 2023. A self-proclaimed “libertarian” economist, he campaigned in the modern populist style, complete with the requisite chainsaw and promises to slash the government size and spending and go after labor unions and bureaucrats, promising all kinds of deregulation. 

John A. Tures is a professor of political science at LaGrange College in LaGrange, Georgia.  His views are his own.  He can be reached at jtures@lagrange.edu or on “X” at @johntures2. His first book “Branded” will be coming out this Fall, published by Huntsville Independent Press (https://www.huntsvilleindependent.com/).