The ruling party and the opposition intensified the negotiations in search of an agreement so that a large part of the opposition fan accompanies the approval of the agreement between the Government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to refinance the debt of 45 billion dollars taken by Mauricio Macri. The President of the Chamber of Deputies, Sergio Massamet with representatives of the three main blocs of Together for Change: The legislators of the PRO, the UCR and the CC once again proposed changes in the articles of the Executive’s project with the idea of supporting the financing of the debt without having to follow the economic program that was agreed with the IMF. “That’s how it’s unvotable,” warned the priests of the JxC interblock with a hint of threat in the face of the difficulties of the front of all to add wills in favor of the agreement. Massa, who heads the negotiations, sought to probe the positions of the rest of the opposition blocs in direct contact with Alberto Fernandez to analyze the situation and finish defining the legislative strategy. Late on Tuesday, the ruling party opened the possibility of modifying the project if they manage to unify positions around the same text to take to the venue and if JxC guarantees their vote in favor.
the first meeting
The parade of exhibitors before the plenary of the Budget and Finance Commissions of Deputies culminated and accelerated the time for definitions. While union leaders took a stand before the deputies in the Annex of the Lower House, and while the agreement also received the support of the governorsMassa received shortly before noon in his office at the Legislative Palace the priests of the JxC interblock: Mario Negri (UCR), Juan Manuel Lopez (CC) and the Vice President of the Budget Committee, Luciano Laspina (PRO), who replaced the head of the macrista bloc, Cristian Ritondo, who preferred to travel to ExpoAgro. Nor was the head of the FdT bench, German Martinezwhich closely followed the committee plenary.
The meeting lasted an hour. There, the JxC deputies insisted on changing the articles of the project because, they assured, they are “willing to approve the financing” but “not the economic program.” Something that until now the Minister of Economy, Martin Guzman, does not accept, because it considers that they are parties to the same agreement. “There is no legal, economic and political reason for Congress to approve the government’s economic policy,” said the opposition legislators, and it was then that they remarked that “thus the project is unvotable.”
the three drafts
Anyway, the JxC deputies slid across the table three possible modifications to accompany the financing agreement with the IMF, although all subject to the agreement reached by the national leadership of the opposition alliance.
Shortly after, from the JxC interblock, they came out to deny that they had presented three alternative “drafts” to the ruling party. In any case, the texts were already circulating in the plenary of commissions in search of adhesions and to unify the opposition positions. Alternatives proposed by the UCR, the CC and the PRO had been added to the project sent by the Government, in addition to another circulated by the Cordovan deputies, which answers to the governor John Schiaretti.
From his office, Massa waved his computer and his cell phone to talk with the opposition blocks. The agenda included talks with Alejandro “Topo” Rodriguez (the lavagnista who presides over the Federal Interbloc, where Cordobans and socialists from Santa Fe converge), Luis Di Giacomo (We are all Ríos Negro and member of the United Provinces interblock) and Rodrigo di Loredo (He chairs the dissident radicalism block Evolución Radical, part of JxC).
possible changes
to all of them Massa conveyed to them the possibility that the ruling party opens the doors to the modification of the project as long as a unified text is reached to take to the venue. “It is an institutional issue that exceeds all governments and that seeks to avoid default,” Massa told his interlocutors and assured them that his job “is to reconcile the position of all the actors.” All in direct contact with the President.
Negotiations were also not interrupted with JxC. During the afternoon, at the meeting of the small table of the opposition interbloc, they spoke again three times with Massa. There they proposed to the president of the lower house the idea of a project of a single article that “guarantee the financing and terms of the agreement with the IMF”. To bring positions closer, it was also proposed to incorporate into the text that “The Government is empowered to coordinate goals with the IMF”, without endorsing the economic plan that Guzmán agreed to. Massa left the door open to the consultation.
This Wednesday morning the small table of the opposition interbloc will meet again to polish the proposal that would bring it closer to the ruling party. In the afternoon, the national table of the opposition alliance will meet by Zoom to define what they will do. Therefore, the offer must pass the filter of a group of leaders who profess conflicting opinions.
In this scenario, the plenary session of commissions scheduled for 11:30 on Wednesday, with the purpose of discussing the opinion that will be taken to the venue, could go to an intermediate room until the proposals are clearer. Among the issues that are analyzed is also the idea of limiting the list of speakers and avoiding discursive confrontations that shipwreck the possibility of an agreement. Nothing is closed.