Milei’s Cabinet Chief Adorni denies corruption allegations in Congress appearance

Cabinet Chief Manuel Adorni denied having committed “any crime” on Wednesday during an eagerly anticipated appearance before Congress that was more focused on his private life than public administration.

Adorni, 46, was supported by a number of top government officials in the lower house Chamber of Deputies, including President Javier Milei – a clear sign of backing for his under-fire official who is facing corruption allegations related to his personal wealth and assets.

“I have committed no crime and I will prove it in court,” Adorni declared to the lower house as Milei and several top officials applauded him from the gallery.

Adorni has been under intense scrutiny for nearly two months following revelations about property purchases involving lenders that he failed to declare publicly in his sworn statements, which are now under judicial investigation. 

There have also been reports of lavish family trips and spending allegedly inconsistent with his assets since he took office in December 2023.

Criticism was also aired after it emerged that Adorni’s wife – who has no government position – had travelled to the United States onboard the presidential plane ahead of March’s ‘Argentina Week’ roadshow promotional event in New York.

President Milei has backed him unequivocally and continued to do so Wednesday. “You are the corrupt ones, you are the corrupt ones,” he yelled at journalists who approached him as he entered Congress and asked why he continued to support Adorni.

Milei’s government – which has proclaimed publicly its aim to “make morality a matter of state policy” – has been shaken by several corruption scandals, ranging from the alleged misappropriation of funds for disability services and undeclared assets among various government members to an alleged multi-million fraud involving the ‘$LIBRA’ cryptocurrency Libra, which implicates the President himself.

This week, the head of the ARCA tax collection agency also came under suspicion for allegedly failing to declare assets abroad. Economy Minister Luis Caputo dismissed one of this top officials after it emerged that seven flats in Miami had not been declared to the tax authorities.

Against this backdrop, the Cabinet chief’s annual management report turned into a kind of interrogation, with more than 4,000 questions submitted.

“How do you explain that you earn in pesos but spend in dollars far beyond your income?” asked left-wing lawmaker Myriam Bregman (Frente de Izquierda y de los Trabajadores–Unidad).

 

‘Biased and false’

Adorni has become one of Milei’s most important aides after initially serving as the head of state’s presidential spokesperson. 

With a confrontational and ironic tone, he regularly turned press conferences into one of the main platforms for defending the government’s narrative against corruption and speaking in favour of austerity.

However, he has not spoken publicly since March 25, when he had a heated exchange with the media just as the corruption scandal was brewing.

On Wednesday, Adorni described all the accusations against him as “biased and false.”

He called for a distinction to be made between his private and public expenses and for his private life to be separated from “acts of government.”

The official committed to filing an up-to-date sworn statement detailing his assets and wealth by July 31.

“They are not comparable under constitutional, criminal or civil law. I have personally covered the costs of all the trips I took with my family, which were limited solely to personal holidays and those of my immediate family,” he stated. 

Adorni also dismissed any sense of wrongdoing relating to his wife’s free trip to New York.

“It was clarified in court that my wife travelled as a guest solely on the flight leaving the country and that she returned on a commercial flight on March 15, 2026,” he said, adding: “It was concluded that the documentation relating to the flight manifest and the authorising resolutions did not reveal any irregularities.” 

The official noted that an investigation into the incident had been closed by the courts and emphasised that “the mission was duly authorised and no offence was committed.” 

“It was established in court that there were no expenses for travel, accommodation, meals or any other costs incurred by the State, and that there was no breach of the terms of her invitation,” he asserted. 

“This proves that, when the justice system is allowed to act, the political manoeuvres that some try to orchestrate in this Chamber are exposed,” he added.  “I apologised to the Argentine people, recognising that my conduct must always be beyond reproach, and I have made myself available to the justice system in response to every allegation.” 

Adorni maintained that “there is not, nor has there ever been, any breach of the rules on incompatibilities and conflicts of interest set out in the Public Ethics Act or its regulations.”

“No previous government has ever cooperated immediately with investigations into allegations made against its own officials,” claimed the official.

“The members of this Chamber wish to equate private expenditure with public expenditure and the activities of my private life with acts of government. They are not comparable under constitutional, criminal or civil law,” he stated.

He added that “in all cases, the National Directorate of Migration, the General Directorate of Customs or the Airport Security Police intervened, as required, and all the necessary checks were carried out.” 

“I have not committed any crime, and I will prove it in court,” he concluded.

 

Further austerity

After a brief introduction by Lower House Speaker Martín Memen, Adorni took an aggressive stance from the off, citing the government’s economic and political inheritance and defiantly declaring the government's reforms to be leading Argentina towards greater wealth and out of “populist decadence.”

He said it was an "honour and responsibility to coordinate the most reformist government in history.”

There was a tinge of paranoia too when the official accused the Kirchnerite opposition of attempting to carry out a “coup” style plot during last year’s midterm election campaign with the support of anti-government media outlets.

There was, however, also an admission that not all the reforms had impacted positively upon the pockets of everyday Argentines.

In the more substantive part of his report, Adorni reaffirmed that the Milei administration’s policy of austerity and fiscal balance “is non-negotiable” and announced that budget cuts would continue across all ministries. 

“We have eliminated nine ministries, 100 secretariats, 25 agencies… today there are 65,000 fewer public employees. Annual savings exceed 2.505 billion dollars,” he said to applause from allied lawmakers.

Adorni acknowledged, however, that inflation had accelerated since the middle of last year, with consumer prices rising 3.4 percent last month. He attributed it to “turbulence generated by Kirchnerism, rent-seeking businessmen and certain media outlets,” rather than any weakness in the Milei administration’s economic plan.

The government sent its presentation report to Congress minutes before Adorni’s appearance. “Report 145” ran to 1,936 pages and included responses to many of the questions that were pre-submitted by lawmakers.

Around Congress, the government deployed a heavy security operation, clamping down on demonstrators.

A small group of pensioners held their usual Wednesday protest demanding higher pensions and voiced their opposition to Adorni.

“I’m here because people simply can’t go on, there’s a crisis unlike anything I’ve experienced in my life,” said 76-year-old pensioner Ana Martínez. “Adorni is a thief and has no shame – he uses public money to travel, he’s a criminal.”

Protesters set up an improvised soup kitchen as part of the protest. “This government doesn’t see us; everyone is enriching themselves and they don’t think about us,” said 58-year-old Lucía Guzmán.

The case coincides with adverse indicators: economic activity fell by 2.1 percent year-on-year in February, and confidence in the government has declined for the fourth consecutive month, according to Di Tella University.

One lawmaker – Pablo Juliano of Provincias Unidas – asked Adorni directly if he would step down from his role.

“Regarding the question of whether I am going to resign or continue, I want to make it clear that I am not. On the contrary, I am here facing the music,” the official stated.

“Worst part of the storm is over,” he added.

– TIMES/AFP/NA