Post by Fernando Chepote

Corruption scandals push Milei toward Argentina establishment he vilified President Javier Milei rode to power vowing to destroy the political elite he derided as “the caste.” Now, after a string of corruption scandals, he’s turning to one of its most recognisable figures. Diego Santilli. | bloomberg President Javier Milei rode to power vowing to destroy the Argentine political elite he derided as “the caste.” Now, after a string of corruption scandals, he’s turning to one of its most recognisable figures to run his Cabinet. Diego Santilli, a veteran political operator, is set to take over Tuesday afternoon as the president’s Cabinet chief, days after top Milei ally Manuel Adorni resigned amid deepening allegations of impropriety. The appointment marks more than a reversal for a President who once cast Santilli as emblematic of a rotten system. It is the clearest sign yet that Milei is trading his outsider crusade for old-fashioned power politics as he tries to steady a government facing political and economic headwinds ahead of elections next year. “The anti-caste message was already tarnished, and Adorni finished the job,” said Lucas Romero, director of Synopsis, a Buenos Aires political consultancy. “There’s not much point in continuing to push it.” Milei, a libertarian economist and former television pundit, filled his first Cabinet with an eclectic cast of anti-establishment figures that included a longtime friend as an earlier Cabinet chief and a university professor as foreign minister. Nearly all have since left, with the exception of core members of the economic team and Karina Milei, his sister and closest confidante. But Adorni’s departure is significant even in those terms. Until his Saturday resignation, the 46-year-old former newspaper columnist and TV commentator had served as the public face of Milei’s crusade against the political class, first as the presidential spokesman and then as Cabinet chief. He stepped down amid an investigation into real estate purchases and luxury travel that generated accusations of illicit enrichment given his relatively modest public salary. Adorni’s explanation that his apparent riches came from a decade-old Bitcoin bet drew scrutiny from skeptical cryptocurrency investors.  Adorni denied wrongdoing, but the final straw came Friday when local newspaper La Nación reported that he’d spent big on a video game set-up as well. The Adorni episode followed a string of controversies that had also begun to dent Milei’s image as an anti-corruption crusader, including the President’s promotion of a crypto asset that collapsed within hours of its release last year. The former head of Argentina’s ANDIS disability agency has also faced allegations of participating in a kickback scheme. Milei stood behind Adorni through it all, even appearing in Congress alongside his entire Cabinet to support his ally in April. It was an expense of vital political.