Javier

The congressional setback arrives as Milei’s political party faces slumping popularity headed into a midterm election.

Argentina’s struggling President Javier Milei has suffered a new setback as Congress overturned his vetoes of laws increasing funding for public universities and for paediatric care.

On Thursday, senators invalidated both vetoes, which had already been rejected by the Chamber of Deputies, bringing to three the number of laws upheld by Congress despite vehement opposition from the budget-slashing Milei.

Milei, who has implemented deep austerity policies to reduce the size of government, had said the new spending would jeopardise Argentina’s fiscal balance.

The Senate’s vote comes as the United States-backed Milei struggles to end a run on the national currency, the Argentinian peso, in the run-up to the crucial October 26 midterm elections.

The 54-year-old right-winger, in power since December 2023, has been on the ropes since his party’s trouncing by the centre-left in Buenos Aires provincial polls last month.

Those elections, seen as a bellwether ahead of the midterms, shredded his aura of political invincibility and sent markets into a tailspin.

“There’s a sensation of disenchantment and anger with the impact of the cutbacks,” said Sebastian Halperin, a political consultant in Buenos Aires.

He added that Milei had failed to build alliances with governors who influence how their province’s legislators vote in Congress.

Last week, the US government announced it was in talks with Argentina on a $20bn swap line aimed at shoring up the peso.

US President Donald Trump sought to buoy his close ally at talks in New York last week, saying: “He’s doing a fantastic job.”

The two are expected to meet in October as Milei seeks to secure a credit swap line from the US.

Analysts say, however, the president still needs a strong result in the midterms to avoid compromising the progress he has made in steadying Argentina’s economy.

After rallying briefly, the peso slumped again this week over market uncertainty about the amount and extent of the US financial help on offer.

HOUSTON — Cristian Javier didn’t give up a hit in six innings and three relievers completed the two-hitter to help the Houston Astros to a 2-0 win over the Angels (62-72) on Friday night.

Javier struck out six, walked three and threw 85 pitches in six innings. He was making his fourth start of the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in June 2024.

He was relieved by Enyel De Los Santos (5-3), who gave up a double to Yoán Moncada for the Angels’ first hit of the game, but secured the win.

Kaleb Ort secured a four-out save — his first save of the season — after relieving Craig Kimbrel in the eighth. Kimbrel walked three and threw eight strikes in 25 pitches. Ort secured a fly out from Jo Adell to end the eighth, then finished with a perfect ninth.

Carlos Correa broke the scoreless tie with an RBI single in the seventh that scored Yordan Alvarez. The Astros (75-60) were 0 for 9 with runners in scoring position before that hit off losing pitcher Luis García Jr. (2-1).

Alvarez drove in a second run in the eighth on a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Cam Smith, who walked earlier in the inning.

Key moment: Before Correa’s single, Alvarez reached first base on a fielding error by second baseman Christian Moore. He scored after advancing on a bloop single from Jose Altuve.

Key stat: Javier’s six no-hit innings are tied for second-longest no-hit outing of his career with a nine-strikeout performance in the 2022 World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies. His career best was a seven-inning performance against the New York Yankees on June 25, 2022.

Up next: The Astros will send RHP Spencer Arrighetti (1-5, 6.21 ERA) to the mound against Angels RHP Kyle Hendricks (6-9, 5.04) on Saturday.

The Milei government is weathering a bribery scandal as a pair of important elections approach in September and October.

Argentina’s President Javier Milei has been forced to leave a campaign rally in Lomas de Zamora, a suburb of Buenos Aires, after protesters pelted his vehicle with small rocks, bottles and other objects.

On Wednesday, Milei and members of his libertarian party, La Libertad Avanza, held a rally for voters ahead of two key upcoming elections.

On September 7, the province of Buenos Aires is expected to hold local races. And on October 26, the country faces midterm elections, which will see half of the 257-seat Chamber of Deputies up for grabs, as well as a third of the Senate.

The elections are seen as major tests for Milei as he reaches the midpoint of his four-year term as president.

But Milei, whose dark-horse election victory in 2023 upset Argentina’s political establishment, has faced backlash for the dramatic “shock treatment” he has attempted to undertake with the country’s economy.

His administration has also been rocked by a bribery scandal involving his sister, Karina Milei.

As Milei and Karina stood on the bed of an open pick-up truck on Wednesday, waving to supporters and signing autographs, witnesses reported seeing objects flying in their direction as protesters attempted to approach the vehicle.

Presidential spokesperson Manuel Adorni shared a picture on the social media platform X, with a circle highlighting what appeared to be a rock thrown in the president’s direction.

“They could have killed anyone,” Adorni said of the protesters. “They don’t care about human life, and they’ll care even less about the country. The end.”

Video captured the pick-up truck accelerating to escape the crowd. One protester held aloft a mock suitcase with Karina Milei’s face on it and dollar bills sticking out in odd places. Others chanted, “Out with Milei!”

The news agency AFP reported that one Milei supporter had to be transported by ambulance for medical care after clashes with protesters resulted in rib injuries. But no officials in the Milei pick-up truck were injured.

Milei himself used the incident to campaign on social media against “Kirchnerism”, a left-wing political movement.

“The empty-headed nutters throwing rocks resorted to violence again,” he wrote in one post. “On September 7 and October 26, let’s say at the polls: KIRCHNERISM NEVER AGAIN.”

In another, Milei put the choice more starkly: “Civilisation or barbarity.”

Milei has taken dramatic action to regulate Argentina’s spiralling inflation, but his austerity campaign has included cuts to social safety-net services, widespread government layoffs and sweeping deregulation.

He famously campaigned with a chainsaw to symbolise his approach to government bureaucracy. But critics warn that his efforts have left Argentina’s poorest citizens more vulnerable. While official statistics indicate inflation has dropped, unemployment and poverty have risen.

The bribery allegations have heightened the backlash against his administration.

Karina Milei occupies a high-level position in Milei’s government, as a general secretary to the president.

But audio recordings have captured Diego Spagnuolo, the head of the National Disability Agency and a close ally of Milei, claiming that Karina took a cut from government contracts intended to help those with disabilities.

Milei has since fired Spagnuolo, and in his public appearances on Wednesday, he repudiated the recordings.

“Everything he says is a lie,” Milei told reporters in Lomas de Zamora. “We are going to bring him to justice and prove he lied.”

Milei put on a united front with his sister at Wednesday’s rally, appearing side by side with her in the pick-up truck.

JAVIER MASCHERANO reverted to managing Inter Miami from his PHONE in the stands after being sent off against Tigres.

The former Liverpool midfielder was incensed after stoppage time in the first half of the Leagues Cup quarter-finals went over five minutes long.

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Anfield great Luis Suarez had opened the scoring in Fort Lauderdale from the penalty spot after 23 minutes but only after a lengthy VAR check.

Referee Mario Escobar added the time on before the break – leaving Miami boss Mascherano fuming.

As a result, he was given his marching orders and forced to watch the second half from the stands.

But cameras revealed the ex-Barcelona man talking tactics to his assistant Lucas Rodriguez Pagano on his mobile phone.

The 41-year-old – who retired in 2020 before moving into management with Argentina’s youth sides two years later – also barked orders from his seat.

Mascherano was breaking the rules by doing so – with his ejection meant to prohibit any contact with his team.

Angel Correa levelled the scoring in the cup on the 67th minute.

But once again Suarez – who joined former Barca team-mates Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba to Miami last year – came to the rescue.

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The Uruguayan forward – who spent three seasons at Liverpool before joining Barca in 2014 – converted from the spot again.

Messi – out of the cup tie due to injury – celebrated from his pitchside box with his son and Suarez’s boy Benjamin.

Miami progress to the last four of the tournament and sit fifth in the Eastern Conference of the MLS.

Mascherano’s other assistant Javier Morales – holding the post-match press conference – was probed on the red card.

Morales said: “The referee added four minutes and we ended up playing six minutes. So we argued about the time.

“We’re human, we start to talk and the referee said Javier got a red card and that’s it. We didn’t have much information.

“We complained about the time, he said four minutes and next they’re playing six.”

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President Javier Milei of Argentina has proposed a new $1m initiative to strengthen relations between Latin America and Israel, ahead of an anticipated visit from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

On Monday, the Genesis Prize Foundation — a group that offers an annual award to members of the Jewish community — announced that Milei, its most recent winner, would use his prize money to launch a new nonprofit, the American Friends of the Isaac Accords (AFOIA).

“AFOIA is a vehicle to promote Milei’s bold vision and encourage other Latin American leaders to stand with Israel, confront antisemitism, and reject the ideologies of terror that threaten our shared values and freedoms,” Genesis Prize co-founder Stan Polovets said in a news release.

The statement explained that the new nonprofit was inspired, in part, by efforts under United States President Donald Trump to normalise relations between Israel and its Arab neighbours.

During Trump’s first term, from 2017 to 2021, countries like Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates agreed to establish diplomatic relations with Israel in a series of deals known as the Abraham Accords.

Milei’s efforts, meanwhile, come as Israel faces growing condemnation in Latin America over its war in Gaza, which United Nations experts have compared to a genocide.

Countries like Colombia and Bolivia have severed diplomatic ties with Israel since the start of the war in 2023, and Brazil recently became the latest nation to join a case against Israel brought by South Africa before the International Court of Justice.

“The Isaac Accords aim to mirror the success of the Abraham Accords by fostering diplomatic, economic, and cultural cooperation between Israel and key Latin American nations,” the news release said.

Pushing against a regional trend

The nonprofit will initially focus its efforts on three Latin American countries: Uruguay, Panama and Costa Rica. The news release credits regional analysts as saying those countries are “primed for enhanced cooperation with Israel”.

“These nations stand to benefit significantly from Israeli expertise in water technology, agriculture, cyber defense, fintech, healthcare, and energy,” it said.

But the Isaac Accords nonprofit ultimately aims to expand its mission to Brazil, Colombia, Chile and potentially El Salvador by 2026.

Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, applauded the establishment of the nonprofit and praised Milei as “setting an example for his neighbors in the region”.

But he acknowledged that several high-profile Latin American leaders have spoken out against Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.

“Given the hostility toward the Jewish state from some nations in the region, support of Israel by Latin American countries which are now on the sidelines is very important,” Danon said in the release.

Top leaders like Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva have forcefully denounced the human rights abuses unfolding in Gaza, where more than 61,500 Palestinians have been killed and many risk perishing from hunger.

The enclave is under an Israeli blockade that restricts the amount of food, water and essential supplies reaching residents. Last month, the UN warned of “mounting evidence of famine” and “catastrophic hunger” in Gaza.

“We cannot remain indifferent to the genocide carried out by Israel in Gaza, the indiscriminate killing of innocent civilians and the use of hunger as a weapon of war,” Brazil’s President Lula told the BRICS economic alliance in July.

Milei embraces Israel

But while left-wing Latin American leaders like Lula take steps to distance themselves from Israel, Milei, a libertarian, has taken the opposite approach.

In June, for example, Milei confirmed his intention to move Argentina’s embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem by 2026, despite conflicting Israeli and Palestinian claims on the city. Trump made a similar decision in 2018.

Milei has also praised Israel for its human rights record, including in a social media post this past May honouring the 77th anniversary of its establishment in 1948, which resulted in the mass displacement of Palestinians.

“I congratulate the State of Israel on its short but glorious 77 years of existence,” the Argentinian president wrote. “Like Argentina, Israel is a beacon of FREEDOM and DEMOCRACY.”

Milei, a Catholic, has even expressed interest in converting to Judaism, which would be a first for an Argentinian president.

His selection as the 2025 Genesis Prize winner is considered a first for a non-Jewish person, and it is tradition for winners to give the cash award to a cause they support.

But Milei’s pro-Israel stance has prompted public backlash in Argentina. On Saturday, thousands of protesters flooded the streets of the capital Buenos Aires to condemn Israeli actions in Gaza.

“We not only demand the opening of borders and the entry of humanitarian aid: We support the fight for a #FreePalestine. Zionism is not Judaism,” one group involved in the protests, JudiesXPalestina, posted on social media.

A test for the International Criminal Court

Many demonstrators also voiced opposition to reports that Netanyahu would visit Argentina in the coming weeks.

The Israeli prime minister’s arrival would test Argentina’s commitment to the International Criminal Court (ICC), of which it is a member.

In 2024, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his former defence minister, Yoav Gallant, on the basis that there are reasonable grounds to believe they had overseen war crimes in Gaza.

The ICC, however, relies on member countries to carry out such arrests. Argentina’s decision to welcome Netanyahu may therefore be seen as a rebuke to the court’s authority, further weakening its power.