Santiago Caputo breaks his silence: he distances himself from the SIDE controversy and praises Macri
Javier Milei’s influential advisor gave his first public interview, a few hours from the conversation held by the head of State with Macri at Olivos.
Santiago Caputo, President Javier Milei’s advisor and key piece of the ruling party, spoke of several topics in his first interview, after seven months of La Libertad Avanza’s term. The libertarian consultant and communication strategist was consulted on his involvement in the new scheme of the SIDE State Intelligence Secretariat and also gave his opinion on former president Mauricio Macri, who has held a recent meeting of several hours at the Olivos Residence with the head of State.
While talking to journalist Manuel Jove on television, Milei’s “star” advisor talked about one of the most controversial topics which has shaken up the libertarian administration over the last few weeks: decree 656/2024, through which he allocated reserved funds to the SIDE to the tune of 100 billion pesos.
In this respect, Caputo stated that he played “no formal role in the restructuring of the SIDE” and clarified that the initiative “was the result of the President's vision to reform the intelligence system which has been a sewer over the last 30 years”.
In this interview, Santiago Caputo claimed that he has an “excellent opinion” of former chief executive Mauricio Macri, whom he praised and thanked.
“Macri laid the foundation for Argentina to finally be able to change”, Caputo depicted about the PRO leader and then underlined his gratitutde to La Lbertad Avanza “for their unconditional support for the change being conducted by President Javier Milei”.
In the context of the “mysterious” meeting between Milei and Macri at the Olivos Residence, Santiago Caputo mentioned recurrent "chats" with the PRO founded and avoided any details about the recent approach between PRO and La Libertad Avanza, which happened a few hours after Macri publicly reappeared at a rally to be held in La Boca.
“We’ve had very good private talks, it’s always interesting to listen to someone who has achieved so much”, said Caputo on television.
Moreover, the presidential advisor claimed he does not believe “in political marketing prescriptions” and then illustrated what he believes is the distinctive trait of the current government in terms of communication: “The great novelty of this government is that it’s upfront and tells the truth to citizens”.
Despite his remarkable influence in the libertarian organisation chart, Milei’s advisor dismissed the possibility of holding a public post: “I have no formal responsibilities”.
“I simply try to help the President and Karina Milei”, explained Caputo.
On the other hand, Santiago Caputo strongly questioned the opposition and caught up with the previous government over the alleged “legacy” which conditioned the current economic setting. “You always have to do the opposite of what Kirchnerism did. I do believe that given the lethal crisis inherited by this government substance is much more important than form”, stated Milei’s premium advisor.
--TIMES/PERFIL