Javier Milei, Argentina President who 'chainsawed' his Federal Bureaucracy, issues major advice to Elon Musk
Javier Milei gave advice to Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who would head the newly established Department of Government Efficiency.
Javier Milei, the President of Argentina, became the first political figure to meet with Donald Trump after his resounding presidential election victory, snapping pictures, and mingling with US senators at Mar-a-Lago.
During his brief US visit, the self-described “anarcho-capitalist” Milei held talks with podcaster Lex Fridman.
Fridman's audience has several young American men who backed Trump's comeback to the White House. During the interview, he questioned Milei about his contentious “chainsaw” plan to cut federal expenditure and revive Argentina's economy.
The Argentine President gave advice to Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who would head the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an idea that was partially influenced by Milei's own attempts to reduce government waste.
“My advice is to go all the way,” Milei suggested. “Just cut to the chase, push it to the limit, and never give up. Stay on guard,” he added.
The DOGE will be tasked with an aim to reduce inefficiencies in government operations. Musk asserted that the department will eliminate $2 trillion in federal waste, or about a third of the $6.75 trillion US budget, which Trump announced as a key component of his economic strategy.
However, no economist thinks this amount can be reached without significantly lowering the national debt and the costs of servicing that debt, Newsweek reported.
Here's how Milei's policies have impacted Argentina
Milei has imposed massive budget cutbacks in Argentina as president, dismantling half of the nation's 18 ministries, firing tens of thousands of public servants, and cutting government spending by a staggering 31 percent in his first ten months in office. He underlined the work of his Ministry of Deregulation, which removes one to five economic barriers each day.
“We have a team removing laws that hinder the economy,” the Argentina President told Fridman.
Milei's administration has so far lowered public university budgets by thirty percent, deregulated bus and air travel, eliminated rent controls, streamlined divorce procedures, required state healthcare providers to utilize less expensive generic medications, and expedited the implementation of contracts in US dollars.
In the last six months, Milei's “shock therapy” has forced roughly 5.5 million people to live in poverty, with cutting down over 70 percent of teachers' salaries.
Speaking to Fridman, Milei justified his actions, blaming the previous government, which ruled for 40 years, for Argentina's poverty. “We did not create poverty. Poverty was inherited. What we did was to reveal it,” he asserted.
