Last Friday, Casa Rosada was the scene of a summit that could define the legislative course for the coming months. Cristian Ritondo, head of the PRO bloc in the Chamber of Deputies, and Martín Goerling, his counterpart in the Senate, met with Chief of Cabinet Diego Santilli in a meeting that promises to be the starting point for a series of mutual concessions between the ruling party and the Macri supporters.
The libertarian government, whose agenda was paralyzed for nearly three months due to the scandal involving former minister Manuel Adorni, desperately needs the PRO’s votes to push through two key projects: political reform, which includes the repeal of the PASO primaries and their replacement with a system of «colectoras» (collector parties), and the law on the inviolability of private property, which seeks to eliminate restrictions on land purchases by foreigners.
This latter initiative suffered a major setback in the Senate days ago, failing to reach the necessary numbers for approval. The chapter limiting the number of hectares that foreigners can acquire divided opinions and left the project stalled until August 6. But the Executive is not giving up and is betting on negotiations with the yellow allies to unblock it.
On the other side of the table, the PRO has its own list of priorities. In the Senate, the Macri supporters are pushing for the update of the mental health law, harsher penalties for false accusations, the cold zone project, and, of course, the inviolability of private property, where they coincide with the libertarians. They also want to advance with the deregulation of the state, the handling of judicial agreements, and the strengthening of laws against environmental crime.
In the Chamber of Deputies, the yellow agenda includes clean records, the eviction law and fight against land usurpation, reform of the penal code, harsher penalties for homicides of minors under 18 during robberies, and reform of political party financing. A list that, for now, is subject to the central negotiation: how both groups will present themselves in the 2027 elections.
«We continue working responsibly to promote reforms that consolidate economic order and build a country with more development, investment, and opportunities,» Ritondo declared after the meeting, without giving details on the fine print of the possible agreement. But the real dilemma is political: will Mauricio Macri accept a broad alliance with the libertarians or prefer a restricted one to certain districts? Will the PRO push its own presidential candidate? Will they accept the «colectoras» system proposed by Milei?
The government has a maximum objective: to secure the President’s reelection. And for that, it needs the PRO not only to vote for its laws but also to get on the electoral bandwagon. The political wheeling and dealing is in full swing, and what is decided in these weeks could change Argentina’s political landscape.
Para mí estos zurdos del PRO se creen que pueden manguear todo. Negocian sus votos como en una feria mientras los argentinos laburamos para mantenerlos. Si no apoyan la reforma que se vayan todos a la mierda son unos vendepatria. Macri y Santilli cómplices de este desgobierno.
Para mí esto huele a la misma mugre de siempre, los vendepatria del PRO se venden al mejor postor mientras el pueblo se muere de hambre. Macri y los suyos negocian con el gobierno y solo les importa llenarse los bolsillos. Yo creo que ni un paso atrás, a luchar contra estos traidores.