Omnibus law: this is how Milei's first 'defeat' in Congress was created, what's next?

The president of Argentina, Javier Milei, began his official activities in Israel with a visit to the Western Wall in which he was moved to tears. While the president thus began the international tour that will also take him through Italy and the Vatican, In his country the day ended with a hard blow for the Omnibus Law, the star project with which the liberal president seeks to achieve profound reforms on several fronts..

(You can read: Argentina: Javier Milei's reforms are set back in Congress due to lack of support)

The “Law of Bases and Starting Points for the Freedom of Argentines” – or Omnibus Law due to the large number of articles it includes – was left in legislative limbo this Tuesday, after The ruling party asked to end the debate in the Chamber of Deputies due to lack of agreement, so the proposal will be processed again from scratch.

The law was approved in general on February 2, after three days of debate in the Lower House, and it was decided that voting on the articles would begin this Tuesday, the 6th.

(Also: Milei begins a tour of Europe and the Middle East: he plans to meet with Netanyahu and the Pope)

The Chamber was in full voting when the official deputy Oscar Zago asked to return the project to committee because, according to him, the allies in the opposition broke the commitment to accompany key chapters of the Milei initiative, among them the one related to the privatization of companies. public.

“Betrayal pays dearly and La Libertad Avanza is not going to allow governors to extort the people to maintain their privileges. The Bases Law returns to committee” was the text published by the formation led by Milei minutes after that measure was announced, taken by show of hands in the Lower House.

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Disagreements over the content of the law were evident in last week's vote. The project initially included 664 articles, but was reduced to much less than half after negotiations between the ruling party and some opposition blocs..

The delegation of legislative powers to Milei was one of the most controversial points of the negotiations between the ruling party La Libertad Avanza and the main forces that have accompanied him since the project entered its parliamentary process: the Pro, the UCR and We Make the Federal Coalition , recalls the Efe agency.

(In context: Argentina: Javier Milei's reform plan faces its first parliamentary challenge)

“The caste stood against the change that we Argentines voted for at the polls (…) We are going to continue with our program with or without the support of the political leadership that destroyed our country,” Milei wrote on his “X” account from Israel.

Hard defeat

The setback in the law is a hard blow for the Milei government, whose economic program is focused on state deregulation to combat annual inflation of more than 200%.

“This is taking a step back. It is a defeat for Milei, it shows that the way of negotiating the law that the government had carried out until now has failed,” Argentine political analyst Santiago Rodríguez Rey tells El Comercio.

The expert emphasizes that the debate was in a complex situation. “At one point they counted the votes and realized that they were not going to be able to approve the privatizations as they were conceived and they sent the project back to committee, that is, it went back to square one. The project is not rejected, but rather returns to the commission to continue working. After that there will be a new text,” he explains.

(You can read: Argentina's appeal court declares the labor reform decreed by Milei invalid)

“The law in general was approved, but now the letter of the law has to be reworked to create a project that is easier to approve”Add.

With the return of the text to committee, a majority opinion must be obtained again that would return to the Chamber of Deputies for processing before its subsequent passage to the Senate.

In Israel

Milei also seeks to strengthen its role abroad. In Israel, the president announced the project to move the Argentine embassy to Jerusalem.

At the moment, The Argentine embassy is located in Herzliya, near Tel Aviv, where the vast majority of diplomatic representations are located..

(Also: Milei will create anti-corruption Prosecutor's Office to investigate public officials in Argentina)

The Argentine president, who in recent years came closer to Judaism, told the Israeli Foreign Minister that with his visit he wants to express his “support for the people of Israel” and “defend the legitimate defense” of the Jewish State against “the terrorists” of the movement. Palestinian Islamist Hamas.

From Israel, Milei will then travel to Italy to meet with Pope Francis on Monday at the Vatican and meet with the Italian president, Sergio Mattarella, and the prime minister, Giorgia Meloni.

EL COMERCIO (PERU) / GDA