Osaka restaurant in Puerto Madero, located on the ground floor of the Molinos Building complex owned by Alan Faena, is one of Buenos Aires’ most exclusive sushi spots. When customers wait to be seated and try to connect to the WiFi network, they get a surprise that won’t go unnoticed by an attentive political eye. One of the visible networks is called OCPTECH – all in one word and in capitals. OCP Tech is the company owned by businessman Leonardo Scatturice, a man who enjoys excellent access to Javier Milei’s government and has twice featured on the cover of Noticias magazine’s cover this year.
The firm is where Barry Bennett, the protagonist of this story, conducts his business. He is Scatturice’s partner and, since 2016, has worked as a lobbyist tied to the Republican Party in the United States, with strong connections to US President Donald Trump.
On October 8, Bennett led a meeting at OCP Tech’s Puerto Madero offices attended by, among others, lawmakers Miguel Ángel Pichetto, Cristian Ritondo and Rodrigo De Loredo, as revealed by journalist Carlos Pagni in a report. During the conversation, Bennett spoke as if he were an envoy of the US government, laying down the line that the Trump administration was ready to support Argentina’s President Javier Milei.
Bennett’s remarks were later confirmed during Milei’s visit to the United States. He said Washington’s backing would depend on the La Libertad Avanza leader’s ability to guarantee political stability. To achieve that, he explained, the Casa Rosada would have to forge agreements with moderate congressional blocs and allied governors.
Milei’s top presidential advisor Santiago Caputo listened attentively, moving with ease around Scatturice’s offices. Also in attendance was former Infobae journalist Soledad Cedro, now CEO of CPAC Argentina, linked to the conservative US political organisation. Perhaps the most important participant was Matthew Dell Orfano, an executive at Discovery Capital Management, the hedge fund owned by billionaire Rob Citrone, who has invested much of his Latin America capital in Milei’s Argentina. Citrone’s representative wanted a firsthand sense of whether Milei’s allies believed he had any chance of pushing his government’s reform agenda through Congress.
Bennett’s role in these talks gained weight due to the absence of a US ambassador in Argentina (Trump’s incoming envoy Peter Lamela is yet to arrive in Buenos Aires). The lobbyist thus became the closest figure to Trump to set foot on Argentine soil. Moreover, in the encounters between Trump and Milei so far, Argentina’s Foreign Ministry, the US State Department and Argentina’s ambassador in Washington have all played secondary roles – Milei’s own communications team around Caputo has reinforced this narrative on social media, boasting of the adviser’s achievements without grasping the institutional damage done to other members of the administration.
In short, Bennett has become the voice bringing news from the United States – its demands and its promised support – and acting as a kind of unofficial conduit.
Behind the scenes
In February this year, one of Argentina’s most strategic foreign policy moves began to take shape. On February 12, at Santiago Caputo’s request, the SIDE intelligence agency signed a contract with a lobbying firm, Tactic Global. At that time, the firm was not yet officially registered with the US Department of Justice – this would only take place in May – but it was already operating for foreign agents, under contract with the Vietnamese government.
The deal with SIDE coincided with an unprecedented rapprochement between Milei and the Trump movement. Ten days later, on February 22, Milei greeted Trump at the CPAC convention, the annual gathering of the US right. It was their first public contact, sealing a political relationship that would soon turn into an operational bridge between Buenos Aires and Washington.
On March 25, Bennett visited the Casa Rosada in Buenos Aires. The former Trump campaign adviser met with Santiago Caputo. Officially, they discussed “economic and trade cooperation,” but the visit came as Milei’s government desperately sought financial oxygen and foreign political backing amid austerity and social turmoil.
Less than a month later, on April 14, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent arrived in Buenos Aires. At the same time, investor Rob Citrone flew in, aboard Scatturice’s private jet, together with the entire Tactic Global team, to attend a meeting with President Milei. Discovery Capital Management, Citrone’s fund, is not only a key investor in Argentina but also a major client of Scatturice and Bennett’s consultancy firm.
On May 4, Trump sent an emissary to discuss tariffs with Argentina. Washington sought preferential conditions for its companies and, in return, offered diplomatic support and possible financial relief. Barely a month later, on June 4, Bennett returned to Argentina to finalise the details of an agreement. A few days later, on June 11, a photo showed him alongside Scatturice and Trump – the public coronation of a power and business alliance.
On July 28, both operatives celebrated the announcement of a Visa Waiver agreement, the programme that exempts citizens of allied countries from needing a US visa. The following day, Bennett hailed the news in a post on X: “Travelling without a visa between our nations is a great statement of friendship. Milei scores another big win!”
Timeline
On August 1, the US government imposed 10-percent tariffs on Argentine exports, though Washington left the door open to negotiations for exemptions on around 100 products.
On September 16, Bennett resurfaced at CPAC Paraguay, sharing the stage with libertarian figures from across the region and operatives linked to Milei’s inner circle. The event just after a major electoral setback for the Argentine president, proved to be crucial. Bennett promised to secure a new meeting with Trump. Four days later, on September 20, Argentina’s Presidency announced that their encounter would take place on September 23 in New York during the UN General Assembly — another display of Bennett’s influence. After the meeting, the lobbyist posted on X: “A bad day for Argentine socialism, which tried to crash the currency. Freedom is long-term. Thank you, President Trump!”
In October, the exchanges accelerated. On October 7, Bennett arrived in Argentina aboard Scatturice’s jet – the same aircraft embroiled in controversy over Laura Arrieta’s arrival in the country without baggage checks. This time, the Bombardier Global 5000 had a new registration. No longer N18RU, it now bore N100LA, chosen by its owner. In aviation circles, insiders joked: “Scatturice’s plane used to be ‘November One Eight Romeo Uniform,’ now it’s ‘November One Zero Zero Laura Arrieta,’” they laughed.
Bennett returned to the United States soon after. The jet made a one-hour stop in Miami, where Scatturice is believed to have boarded, before continuing to Washington to follow the Trump summit closely.
Bennett’s current mission is to secure a Trump visit to Buenos Aires, after the elections. Talks are reportedly underway, with intelligence agencies already coordinating details for a trip initially pencilled in for December – though it could be brought forward, depending on Milei’s needs.
Past
Alongside his shadow diplomatic mission, Bennett carries a biography shaped in the grey zones of power.
From Ohio to Trump’s inner circle, he is a familiar figure within Republican ranks. Some call him a “hustler,” others, a respected operator. In Buenos Aires, he’s already earned the nickname “Benny Hill” for his resemblance to the British comedian.
Bennett began as a local campaign operative in the 1990s before founding Avenue Strategies, a lobbying powerhouse with direct connections to the White House. He ran former Republican presidential hopeful Ben Carson’s campaign and, after a fierce row, switched sides to advise Trump behind the scenes at the 2015 Republican Convention.
Following Trump’s 2016 victory, Bennett turned political capital into profit, creating a lobbying firm that channelled deals with foreign governments, corporations and Arab nations. Avenue Strategies made no secret of its credentials, billing itself as a “government affairs boutique” with a direct line to the Oval Office. Like many in that trade, Bennett used his influence to push foreign agendas in Washington – but he overstepped.
In 2024, the US Department of Justice accused him of concealing his role as a foreign agent. The case alleged that Qatar – unnamed in court papers – paid Avenue Strategies US$2.1 million to burnish its image and undermine a regional rival. Part of that money was allegedly diverted to a parallel firm indirectly controlled by Bennett. The problem? He never registered it as required under US law, effectively lobbying without full disclosure. The settlement with the US Justice Department included a US$100,000 fine, a pledge not to reoffend, and an 18-month form of probation.
Family
Bennett’s connection to the US presidency also has a personal chapter. His wife, Melissa Schultz Bennett, served as one of former president George W. Bush’s private assistants throughout his two terms, from 2001 to 2009.
At the White House, she was known as “Sweet Melissa” – she was the woman who knew when Air Force One was due to depart, how long the motorcade took to cross the Potomac, and the names and addresses of the “surprise” guests the president planned to visit unannounced. From her West Wing desk, she coordinated the finely tuned machinery that kept the presidency running.
Melissa witnessed the intimacy of power during tragedy. She was in the Oval Office on the morning of September 11, 2001, when National Security advisers burst in to report that a second plane had struck the Twin Towers. In those uncertain days, the Ohio-born secretary became a trusted face to the Bush family. Such was the closeness that on January 20, 2009 – the last day of the administration – George and Laura Bush invited her aboard Air Force One for their final flight to Texas, when it was lent to them by then-US president Barack Obama for their return to the Crawford ranch. It was a gesture of affection towards an aide who had discreetly guarded the president’s schedule and secrets for eight years.
That experience at the heart of Republican power has also shaped her husband’s career. Bennett absorbed from that proximity an almost instinctive understanding of how politics works at the fringes of institutional power – between communication, influence and lobbying.
Years later, when he joined Donald Trump’s team – first as part of the 2016 campaign team and later on international consulting circuits – his name was already tied to the White House.
That network – woven between politics, business and informal diplomacy – came alive again in 2025 with the creation of Tactic Global. Over the months, Bennett’s lobbying operation became a key cog in a parallel diplomacy built on ideological affinity and overlapping interests.
Argentina sought financial backing and legitimacy in Washington; Trump’s movement, meanwhile, wants to expand its geopolitical influence in the Southern Cone to curb China’s reach. In that convergence, Bennett ceased to be a mere consultant and became the perfect executor of a plan involving several players. He has one distinct advantage too: he enjoys the trust of Santiago Caputo, Milei’s chief adviser.
In his dual role as political strategist and lobbyist, Bennett embodies a familiar Washington archetype – the go-between who turns friendship into foreign policy… and into business.
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