The Majority Report with Sam Seder

Episode 3592 – Trump's Government Shutdown and Argentine Bailout w/ Federico Finkelstein

Date: September 30, 2025
Guest: Federico Finkelstein, Argentine historian and Chair of the History Department at the New School for Social Research

Episode Overview

This episode of The Majority Report dives into two major, interconnected crises: the imminent U.S. government shutdown under Trump’s regime and the American-backed bailout of Argentine President Javier Milei, a far-right “mini-Trump.” Host Sam Seder and his co-hosts critically analyze the Democratic leadership’s response to the shutdown and the media spectacle surrounding negotiations, before bringing on Federico Finkelstein to place the Argentine situation in a broader global context of rising authoritarianism and economic turmoil. The show is characterized by its sharp, irreverent progressive analysis and willingness to call out both Republican extremism and Democratic complacency.

Key Discussion Points and Segments

1. Democratic Leadership and the Looming Government Shutdown

• Start — 22:06
  • The government is hours away from an explicit shutdown, engineered by the Trump regime.
  • Sam and Matt critique Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries for their weak, ineffectual messaging.

Notable Analysis:

• Dems are persistently reactive and fail to go on the offense; their language is obscure and technocratic, making their case invisible to the public.
• Schumer, compared unfavorably to Harry Reid, is described as "soft on the outside and even softer on the inside" when it comes to confronting Republicans.
  • Quote (Sam Seder, 05:28):
    “Chuck Schumer, on the other hand, both appears soft on the outside and is even softer on the inside when it comes to aggressively confronting this moment.”

Criticisms of Press Conferences and Political Messaging:

• Dem leaders discuss “impoundment” and “rescissions” instead of using accessible, compelling language that links the shutdown to concrete public harm.
• Quote (Sam Seder, 09:26):
  “Go ask your mom or your friend if they know what impoundment and rescissions mean… people would look at you like they look at me.”

Reaction to Trump’s Social Media Attack:

• Trump releases an AI-generated, racist meme video mocking Democrats.
• The hosts emphasize how these stunts further humiliate weak Democratic leadership rather than directly harming Trump.
  • Quote (Sam Seder, 12:04):
    “He’s basically saying, you’re my bitches. Look at—This is how much I have respect for you… I mock you. I laugh in your face. I mean, this is what happens when you show this level of weakness.”

On Democratic Donor Influence:

• Democrats are seen as more worried about the stock market’s reaction (and thus donor panic) than forming a cohesive political response for the public.
  • Quote (Matt, 12:59):
    “The problem here is that Schumer and Jeffries, of course, are beholden to donors, and the donors are panicked about the government shutdown.”

2. Blame and Political Risk of a Shutdown

• 22:06 — 24:29
  • Polling shows the public blames Republicans by a wide margin for the shutdown; the narrative that Democrats will be punished is called “a fiction.”
  • Quote (Matt, 21:06):
    “The idea that it hurts Democrats’ chances is a fiction... it’s a fig leaf to cover up the fact that [Democrats] don’t want to do anything because their donors are afraid of the stock market.”

3. Interview: Federico Finkelstein on Argentina’s “Mini-Trump” and the U.S.-Backed Bailout

• 29:53 — 57:20

Who is Javier Milei?

• Finkelstein describes Milei as “one of the latest representatives of the wannabe fascist trend that Trump represents globally”—an imitator of Trump but constrained by Argentina’s limits.
  • Quote (Finkelstein, 29:53):
    “Milei is one of the latest representatives of the wannabe fascist trend that Trump represents globally… I have often called him a mini-Trump...”

Economic Policy and the Myth of Libertarianism

• Milei’s policies are characterized as orthodox austerity: aggressive spending cuts, currency controls, growing poverty, and inequality—not true “libertarian freedom.”
  • Quote (Finkelstein, 30:50):
    “He claims to be a libertarian, and yet… his policies seem to be a kind of very standard austerity measure... The freedom part... has been absent.”

U.S. Bailout: Geopolitical and Financial Motives

• Despite “America First” rhetoric, the U.S. is bailing out Milei to the tune of $20B in swaps after an IMF bailout. Why?
  • Ideological alignment: U.S. sees Milei as a loyal Trump ally, delivering a proxy win for Trump’s agenda.
  • Possible backdoor bailout of U.S. bondholders and Trump’s billionaire friends.
    • Quote (Finkelstein, 35:42):
      “If that is the case, [it’s] a typical example of Trump choosing financial interests over... his own voters or many of his own voters.”

Corruption, Cryptocurrency, and Cronyism

• Discussion of Milei’s obsession with crypto, use of state power to launder money, and nepotistic governance with his powerful sister.
  • Crypto is seen as a mechanism for evading oversight and facilitating global corruption.
  • Allegations of direct personal enrichment and blurred boundaries between Milei's family and state.
    • Quote (Finkelstein, 37:25):
      “There were internal communications...there was I think a half a million dollar transfer after some communication with people close to Milei and so on. And in addition to that, his sister...basically running many aspects of Milei's government...”

Wannabe Fascism: What Prevents Full-Blown Authoritarianism?

• The distinction between “wannabe” and actual fascism lies in civil society reaction: protests, elections, and institutional safeguards.
• Comparison to Bolsonaro in Brazil, and the prosecution he faced for attempting a coup—contrasted with U.S. impunity.
  • Quote (Finkelstein, 41:15):
    “Being a wannabe fascist doesn’t mean arriving at the fascist point—often, because societies react either by voting, by protesting, and also by asking for their own institutions to...play their role.”

Social Foundation of Fascism and Public Response

• Fascists offer “hatred instead of goods or material improvements,” selling scapegoating when they cannot deliver materially.
• Argentina’s history of dictatorship creates a robust tradition of protest and skepticism toward power; massive street protests have forced Milei to retreat from key attacks.
  • Quote (Finkelstein, 45:25):
    “Fascists...sell hatred instead of goods or material improvements...they don’t give you anything but hatred, a sense of superiority...At some point economic crisis and poverty kick in.”
• By contrast, the American public is more “numbed” and less likely to mobilize in massive numbers, making the U.S. uniquely vulnerable.

Historical and Structural Factors in Argentina vs. U.S.

• Argentina’s lack of anti-democratic institutions like the U.S. Electoral College, and its distinct political culture, allows electoral blowback against authoritarians.
• Tradition of labor, solidarity, and living memory of dictatorship drive skepticism and protest.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Democratic Leadership’s Weakness (Sam Seder, 10:13):
  “You come out and you say, one of the problems we’ve had making a deal is that Donald Trump doesn’t follow the rules and he’s breaking things for the American people and we want him to stop. Right. Like this should be about...the Democrats are saying, like, he's doing bad things to Americans. We want him to Stop.”
• On the Opportunity for Political Messaging (Matt, 21:06):
  “The idea that it hurts Democrats’ chances is a fiction...”
• On the U.S. Bailout of Milei (Finkelstein, 32:16):
  “From the position of the U.S....why helping this kind of mini-Trump?...Although these policies have been celebrated, poverty had increased, incredible levels of poverty and income inequality… And in that context, Trump somehow imposing himself in the campaign, trying to show that the U.S. supports this model.”
• On Fascism, Hatred, and What Makes People Mobilize (Finkelstein, 45:25):
  “They sell hatred instead of goods or material improvements. This is the reason why...German Social Democrats called the proposal of fascism the socialism of the imbeciles. Because basically they don't give you anything but hatred… At some point economic crisis and poverty kicks. And that is the reason why many people lament they have supported this kind of antidemocratic choices.”
• On Argentine Public’s Mobilization (Finkelstein, 52:30):
  “The equivalent will be...having every now and then the Washington Mall and...the main squares in every city full of people. I mean, that's the message like, that people mobilize in order to give a message to those...to those in power.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment Description | |-----------|--------------------| | 04:32–17:10 | Breakdown of Dem leadership on shutdown: Schumer & Jeffries criticized | | 18:07–22:06 | Reaction to Trump’s racist AI video; failures in Democratic pushback | | 22:06–24:29 | Who gets blamed for a shutdown? Media myths debunked | | 29:53–41:15 | Federico Finkelstein introduction, Milei’s background, U.S.-Argentina bailout | | 41:15–43:31 | Wannabe Fascism: limits, resistance, Brazil/US comparisons | | 45:25–51:05 | Public reaction—fascism, economic crisis, mass protests in Argentina | | 52:30–54:30 | Political culture, protest traditions, role of leadership and labor | | 54:30–57:20 | Corruption, traditions, Milei's rhetoric, relevance for the U.S., final thoughts |

Conclusion

This episode paints a sobering picture of a Democratic Party failing to rise to the challenge of a belligerent far-right executive, both at home and abroad. The U.S. is not just abdicating leadership but actively exporting and bankrolling authoritarian governance in the Southern Hemisphere. Finkelstein’s analysis bridges the American and Argentine experiences, showing how civil society can resist autocracy—but also how elite-driven economic and political structures enable it. Whether discussing the numbed U.S. political climate or the tradition of Argentine protest, the message is clear: only broad-based, sustained public mobilization can block the slide into “wannabe” fascism, and perhaps prevent the real thing.

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