MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

“Legacy” argument no longer stands for the Macri government, warns political analyst

Fraga indicated that Macri made a good speech at the opening of Congress legislative period on March first

The argument of the “legacy” from the Kirchner years no longer stands, since normally on the third year of an elected government public opinion becomes more demanding, explained Argentine political analyst Rosendo Fraga commenting on the latest events in Argentina and the administration of president Mauricio Macri.

 Fraga indicated that Macri made a good speech at the opening of Congress legislative period on March first, “he did not appeal to the legacy inherited from the previous governments as an excuse, as in previous speeches, and on the contrary invited to look ahead and think in the future”

In the third year of any administration “public opinion changes”, said Fraga. At the start of the newly elected administration, “people are tolerant and have great hopes, but the problems which people now face belong to the current government. The inheritance received argument no longer stands”.

Likewise happens with tolerance of corruption cases, “public opinion becomes more demanding from the current government”. And to this effect Fraga mentioned the case of the Federal Intelligence Agency chief, Gustavo Arribas, allegedly involved in a corruption case and who a magistrate absolved. If this was to happen again, as apparently could occur, but this time as a ramification of the massive corruption web of the Brazilian construction group Odebrecht, public opinion reaction will be completely different, with virtually no tolerance margin.

Finally Fraga described the Macri administration and its alleged ideology as a mix of a conservative restoration and a manifestation of what is known as the “post politics”. So far the current administration has showed off this Macri duality approach. In effect overseas Macri is seen as a center right government, but at home the Argentine president wants to be seen as an expression of post-politics, which basically rejects political parties and its structures, an interesting dichotomy which needs the effective street test of public opinion.