Argentina’s vice president challenges Milei over his public defense of Adorni on Flag Day

Victoria Villarruel openly challenged Javier Milei at Argentina’s Flag Day ceremony in Rosario, criticizing the president for appearing with Manuel Adorni and defending him in public while the chief of cabinet faces a corruption investigation.

“It was a patriotic ceremony, not an event to support Adorni,” Villarruel told journalists covering the institutional event. She attended after an invitation from Santa Fe Governor Maximiliano Pullaro, rather than as part of the government delegation, because Milei had not allowed her to join it.

The confrontation adds to a relationship that has been strained almost since the government began. Villarruel and Milei won the 2023 election as running mates, but after taking office they repeatedly fell out. Milei has excluded the vice president from official events, despite their shared place on the ticket.

Their clashes reflect political differences even though both belong to the far right. Villarruel has also criticized Milei’s spending on foreign trips while his administration imposes severe public-spending cuts in Argentina. She is separately known to have poor relations with Presidential Secretary-General Karina Milei and with Adorni, who is close to the Milei siblings.

The dispute over Adorni intensified after Milei announced the appointment of Adrián Ravier, an ultraliberal economist aligned with the president’s ideology. Ravier will replace Adorni in that position next week, leaving Adorni, for now, only as chief of cabinet, a government role with less public exposure.

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It was a patriotic ceremony, not an event to support Adorni.