It is public knowledge that Argentina, like other latitudes, is going through a prolonged process of political polarization, which faces parties or coalitions of parties and confronts societies, often harshly.
But it is probably difficult for citizens of other nations to understand that the polarization that is putting the Argentine government in check is operating implosively within the governing coalition.
Let’s start at the beginning: Peronism, realigned as Frente para la Victoria (or Kirchnerismo) since 2003, began to face the coalition that was born in 2015 under the name Cambiemos, monopolized by Macri’s Pro, but constituted by Pro, the centenary party of the Union Cívica Radical and Coalición Cívica, a coalition that won at the polls in 2015.
In 2019, after the failure of the Macri government, the Kirchnerism of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner (CFK) sought to return to power, but CFK’s electoral strength was not enough to win the presidency and therefore she summoned Alberto Fernández, former chief of her late husband, Néstor Kirchner (from 2003 to 2007), and of herself for a year (until 2008).
After abandoning Cristina’s Kirchnerism, Fernández spent many years severely criticizing CFK’s political actions and ethics through the media and social networks.
The current president even linked the former president to the dubious death of national prosecutor Alberto Nisman and to the cover-up of the attack on the Jewish mutual Amia in Argentina.
However, in 2019, CFK needed to gather the electorate to win the election, and the malicious and the not so much argue that Cristina’s intention to return to power responded to the need to obtain forums and intervene, as far as possible, in Justice. to be able to walk away unscathed after a dozen lawsuits against her.
So, to have a chance of winning the election, he summoned the then “moderate” Peronist Fernández, who managed to attract votes. Thus, the new Frente de Todos won the polls.
In the first months of his term, the president had an excellent image based on this “moderate” style, which seemed to impose itself in the face of a very polarized and quarrelsome party-political leadership.
But as a result of the Covid pandemic, Argentina suffered the longest quarantine in the world decreed by a president, in addition to the fact that the country inherited from Mauricio Macri worrying economic, financial and social maladjustments.
In this context, Fernández found himself discredited after proclaiming decrees that neither he nor his family and friends respected, such as VIP parties or VIP vaccinations for themselves.
Furthermore, the administration of the president, who bet on an endless citizen closure, has led to scandalous public spending, continuous currency issuance, growing indebtedness, a devaluation that has not stopped and continues to increase, a price increase that seems to have no end. , a serious deterioration of the real wage, a collapsing industry and a poverty rate that hurts.
During the first year of administration, the vice president remained silent, as vice presidents usually do in Argentina. But while she kept silent in the face of public opinion, she was busy putting justice reform on the agenda, a topic that worried and worried her, due to the numerous criminal cases that compromise her freedom.
But suddenly the vice president, along with her core group, gathered in the group La Cámpora, led among others by her son Máximo, began to loudly demonstrate the “anti-Alberto” crusade, with constant and public mockery and insults against the president and Albertist ministers and secretaries.
This happened again on July 2, when, while CFK ignored the president, Economy Minister Martín Guzmán presented his resignation in real time via Twitter.
From then on, Albertist officials – who according to CFK “are employees who don’t work” – began to resign, while the pro-Cristina Cámpora continued to control the main government institutions.
After CFK’s merciless attacks and Guzmán’s resignation, Fernández said he would no longer speak to the vice president, and intermediaries had to intervene to convince him to resume dialogue.
During the week, it became known that the president had finally met with CFK, but the topics discussed at the meeting were not known.
Later, the president attended the inauguration of the new Minister of Economy, Silvina Batakis (who was chosen with the approval of CFK), in a ceremony that lasted six minutes.
And it so happened that there was a secret meeting between the president, the vice president and the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Sergio Massa (denied by the government spokeswoman and soon admitted by the government itself), in a climate of total secrecy. This has created enormous uncertainty for markets and uninformed citizens.
Thus, the escalation of the dollar, country risk, prices, the fall in reserves and the impoverishment of Argentines continued.
Meanwhile, the vice president continues to press for a reform of the Supreme Court of Justice to increase its number of members, since, with the current composition, she cannot get the support she needs to be free of blame and accusations.
It was nervously and anxiously expected that at the ceremony to commemorate Argentina’s independence on Saturday, July 9, the president would comment on what had happened.
But once again Fernández submitted to the vice president, who mistreated him and boycotted his administration (a administration that he himself was in charge of polishing), and thus made a speech in which he called sectors of the opposition “prophets of hate”. .
It is worth noting that in the face of negotiations with the IMF to avoid a “default”, the opposition supported him with 96% of the deputies voting in favor, while its own force, Frente de Todos, led by Máximo Kirchner, who voted against what the president needed , gave it only 65% of its membership.
The teletragedy that we Argentines are witnessing shows that the “gap” within the government goes far beyond the confrontation between the officialist party and the opposition. This confrontation is bringing Argentina down, but the president of Argentines does not see, does not hear and does not govern.
