Meet Argentine Hillary

Photo from Associated Press

Cristina Fernandez (it’s funny, but until today her name was Cristina Kirschner), the new President of Argentina, spent her second day in office doing an impression of poor victimized Hillary Clinton. (AP)

Argentina’s new president reacted furiously Thursday to accusations by U.S. prosecutors that an intercepted suitcase full of cash from Venezuela was meant to finance her election campaign, calling the charge “garbage in international politics.”
 
Aides to President Cristina Fernandez accused Washington of using a “vile trick” to smear her government for its close ties to Venezuela’s leftist leader, Hugo Chavez, who is campaigning to reduce U.S. influence in Latin America.

Fernandez, one of only two female heads of state in Latin America, suggested the charges might have been directed at her in part because of her gender.

Yup, that’s right – there’s vast conspiracy against Latin women leaders. And the evil Karl Rove probably sent the suitcase to Argentina just to torpedo her political career. I wonder when she’ll start wearing pantsuits. 

Here’s some background that I wrote this week here and here. From the Washington Post (h/t Kate);

The allegations surfaced just two days after Fernandez de Kirchner, 54, was sworn in to office in Argentina. In recent months, her husband and predecessor as president, Néstor Kirchner, has been dogged by corruption allegations. Political analysts said Wednesday’s arrests could pose serious problems for the new president, who won in a landslide, if the money was definitively linked to her campaign.

“All these past corruption scandals seemed to have some degree of separation from Cristina — they were seen as a part of Néstor Kirchner’s administration and the expectation was that Cristina Kirchner was something better,” said Felipe Noguera, an Argentine political analyst. “So if there is a link to her campaign, then this will be a very big problem for her.”

The Venezuelan government chimed in, according to the Miami Herald;

But Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro called the charges “a desperate effort by the United States government using … the judicial branch for a political, psychological, media war against the progressive governments of the continent.”

Then why can’t the Venezuelan government explain why Mr. Wilson was carrying cash into Argentina in the company of two Venezuelan government oil execs?

In the meantime, while Chavez hands out millions in cash to install friendly governments in foreign countries, Venezuelans are still suffering the shortage of staples. (Financial Times);

On Monday the government took its first step towards attacking widespread shortages by lifting price controls on long-life milk, one of several goods regularly unavailable in shops, leading to long queues and discontent.

There is speculation controls may also be removed from other scarce goods such as sugar, eggs, black beans, chicken, red meat and cooking oil.

Strong economic growth has boosted consumption, particularly among the poor, but shortages are in large part caused by price caps, which Mr Chávez introduced in 2003 to check a rapid rise in prices.

How far behind Venezuela is Argentina? My new friends at Western Hemisphere Policy Watch are heartened that a Bolivian “posse” tried to drive away Venezuelans with a suitcase full of cash with stones and says it’s a symbol of the spirit of freedom that hasn’t been exinguished by the “bolivarian revolution”.

Daniel at Venezuela News and Views tells Kirschner or Fernandez or Clintonez she should come clean;

Cristina might want to wiggle that one out with high heels and hair flying in the breeze, she would be well advised to sacrifice whomever she needs to sacrifice. But her reappointing Nestor’s cabinet tells us that it will be business as usual in Casa Rosada and thus the quality of politics in Argentina are not going to improve a bit in the coming years.

Not very likely, though.

Category: Foreign Policy, Hugo Chavez, Politics