Oct. 7 (UPI) — Argentine President Javier Milei led an unprecedented rock show at Buenos Aires’ Movistar Arena, where he presented his new book, La Construcción Del Milagro, amid lights, rock songs and a campaign-style speech.
The Saturday night event — staged as part concert, part political rally — aimed to reinvigorate his leadership after his party, La Libertad Avanza, posted poor results in Buenos Aires provincial elections.
For more than two hours, Milei combined his roles as economist and performer, taking the stage with his band, La Banda Presidencial, consisting of ruling-party lawmakers and friends, to play Argentine rock classics.
Wearing a leather jacket and holding a guitar, the president turned the book launch into a political spectacle, mixing slogans, ovations and messages aimed at his most fervent supporters.
As the show unfolded, Argentine politics has been going through a turbulent period, with several points of tension pressing on the government and Milei.
On Sunday, liberal economist José Luis Espert — a key ally of Milei and the ruling party’s top candidate for Congress in Buenos Aires province — announced his resignation.
In recent days, Espert admitted receiving $200,000 in 2020 for a “consulting” job linked to Fred Machado, a businessman now jailed in the United States on drug trafficking charges.
Espert denied wrongdoing, but the political cost was immediate, undermining the government’s anti-corruption message and depriving Milei of his most visible figure in the country’s largest electoral district.
This week, Milei’s economic team, led by Economy Minister Luis Caputo, will hold meetings in Washington to finalize a $20 billion “support package” with the U.S. Treasury and coordinate with the International Monetary Fund.
Caputo met with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who said on X that they will continue “productive discussions on the several options that Treasury has at the ready to support Argentina’s strong policies.”
Caputo also met with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, who wrote on X: “I had an excellent discussion with @LuisCaputoAR on Argentina’s outlook and reform efforts. We work hand-in-hand with Argentina, the @USTreasury and other partners in support of macroeconomic stability and growth.”
Recent polls show Milei at his lowest level of popularity since taking office. The consulting firm Management & Fit puts his positive rating at 37.4% and his negative rating at 47.9%. Job approval has dropped to 43.8%, while disapproval has risen to 53.6%.
Meanwhile, pollster Zuban Córdoba measured Milei’s approval at 35.3% and disapproval at 64.7%.
As a backdrop, the government confidence index fell in September to its lowest level of Milei’s presidency. Several surveys indicate corruption has overtaken inflation as the top public concern, a shift that weighs on the president’s image.
