Javier Milei is brash and audacious, and he loves Donald Trump. But in many ways Donald Trump is the one who is following Milei. Argentina has an 18 month head start on Russell Vought’s wet dream of implementing a harsh libertarian doctrine. For a while it looked like everything Milei did was succeeding. He tamed inflation, created an export surplus and got back on track with debt service. Economic shock doctrines that rely on austerity for the masses and corporate giveaways always wind up the same, however. It was only a matter of time. The wheels are coming off Milei’s project this year as inflation is back, money is tight and people are pissed. America’s canary came out of the coal mine with black lung.

Resources

Buenos Aires Times: Economic activity posts biggest slump since 2023

Argus Media: Argentina inflation eases to 32.6pc in March | Latest Market News

Argus Media: Argentina economy has sluggish start to 2026

Peterson Institute for International Economics: Argentina’s fragile monetary framework risks renewed volatility

BBVA Research: Argentina Economic Outlook. March 2026

Americas Quarterly: Argentina’s Polarization Threatens Milei’s Pro-Market Agenda

Americas Quarterly: REACTION: Milei’s Decisive Midterm Election Victory

Paul Krugman: Why Is Trump Bailing Out Argentina? - Paul Krugman

New York Times: Milei Vowed to Fix Argentina’s Economy. Then Came a New Crisis.

Newsweek: Trump’s Argentina bailout sparks fury among farmers, Republicans

Al Jazeera: Argentina Senate approves contentious Milei-backed labour reforms

Buenos Aires Times: Pure polarisation in Congress – Milei delivers partisan speech full of insults

Buenos Aires Times: Sharp drop in Argentina’s poverty rate delivers boost for Milei

LatinNews: In brief: Argentina renews China currency swap line

UNFTR Resources

Video: Milei Promised Miracles, Delivered Chaos—Trump Is Next

Essay: Don’t Cry for me Milei, Argentina.

If you like #UNFTR, please leave us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts and Spotify: unftr.com/rate and follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, and Instagram at @UNFTRpod. Visit us online at unftr.com.

Become a member at unftr.com/memberships.

Buy yourself some Unf*cking Coffee at shop.unftr.com.

Visit our bookshop.org page at bookshop.org/shop/UNFTRpod to find the full UNFTR book list, and find book recommendations from our Unf*ckers at bookshop.org/lists/unf-cker-book-recommendations.

Access the UNFTR Musicless feed by following the instructions at unftr.com/accessibility.

Support the show: https://www.unftr.com/memberships

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.