JAVIER MILEI TAKES UP HIS CHAIN SAW.

The article focuses on Javier Milei, Argentina's president since December 2023, and his efforts to radically reform the country's long-standing statist and interventionist economic system. Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist influenced by Austrian economists like Hayek and Mises, has pursued aggressive deregulation, spending cuts, and institutional downsizing symbolized by his "chain saw" campaign to slash government ministries. Despite early fiscal surpluses and some deregulatory successes, Milei faces significant challenges including persistent inflation, a fragile economy, political opposition from a Peronist-dominated congress, and social unrest. His controversial proposals, such as dollarization, have been postponed amid IMF concerns, and while his reforms have garnered support from younger and poorer voters, the country's deep-rooted political and economic issues remain formidable obstacles to sustained recovery.