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The current president of Argentina is Javier Milei. He is an economist and former television pundit known for his outspoken and confrontational style. He famously campaigned with a symbolic chainsaw to represent cutting public spending. He describes himself as someone who is not motivated by money. He leaves that to the elite class, he says, who are always seeking power to enrich themselves.
He said he wanted power, though. Enough power to cut through and implement radical change, deregulation, freedom, productivity and balance the budget. He sees the power in the office of president as a means to an end but necessary to cut inflation and shrink the state in people’s lives, to enable him to carry out his vision for Argentina, the country he loves.
We won’t, however, see his mop of hair for long. He often says he has no plans to continue in this role. This personal message is consistent with not deriving personal satisfaction from accumulating wealth and luxury living. He has made it clear and widely shared on social media that he plans to do what he can for Argentina but certainly will not cling to power. He wants to make a huge difference in a short space of time. His chainsaw approach helped Argentina move from large deficits to towards surplus in the early years.
Annual inflation dropped from over 211 per cent in 2023 (for peaks near 290 per cent in 2024) to about 31.5 per cent for 2025 – the lowest in roughly eight years. By early 2026, […] forecasts for further declines into the 15–20 per cent range if discipline holds. This was achieved through spending cuts, reduced money printing, and a crawling peg for the peso, restoring some price predictability after decades of instability.
theconversation.com
Argentina recorded its first primary/overall budget surplus in over a decade, […] This resulted from sharp cuts in public spending, […] elimination of many subsidies, […] reduction in public sector jobs (tens of thousands), and halting monetary financing of the deficit. Surpluses have largely been maintained into 2025. Providing an ‘anchor’ for stabilization and reducing reliance on the central bank.
Cato.org
“I only wanted the power to help the country, then retire”, he says.
Once he’s taken the chainsaw to the economy and his term is up, he looks to retiring to a quiet life in the countryside with his English mastiff dogs – quirkily all named after economists he admired from the Chicago School and Austrian/libertarian traditions.
Conan – named after the barbarian from the 1982 film, Conan the Barbarian
Murray – named after libertarian economist Murray Rothbard
Milton – named after economist Milton Friedman
Robert – named after economist Robert Lucas Jr
Lucas - named after Robert Lucas Jr (above).
Milei’s most famous war cry he often shouts at the end of his speeches is:
Viva la Libertad, carajo! – Long live freedom, damn it!
In the popular NZ book, Pressing the Right Buttons, we look at how different personalities function. Allison Mooney, the author, selects the Powerful person as having the best personality to get things done. She divides people into four different categories. None is right or wrong just different but, in the case of a leader, especially a president or prime minister, a powerful visionary can make changes quickly. She depicts the powerful personality leader as being able to accomplish more in a day, in half the time. The job for the Powerful has to be done in a decisive, efficient way and achieved in super quick time.
Mooney describes a powerful person as: adventurous, change agent, decision maker, enjoys challenges, independent, opinionated, single-minded, authoritative, commanding, daring, focused impulsive, productive, restless, brave, competitive, doer, goal driven, likes to lead, quick, visionary.
The USA has Donald Trump.
“You don’t have the cards right now…” Trump powerfully said six times to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office in February 2025. In other words, ‘I have all the cards. Don’t mess with me.’
Trump will be 80 years old in June and, as president, he carries out his presidency by not slowing down, but rather ignoring the opposition coming at him from the mainstream media (MSM) and the left, by fronting up and often infuriating them. It’s like nothing they throw at him sticks. It’s water off a duck’s back.
He rises above the negativity to carry out dismantling DEI initiatives and disrupts everything that is against his personal narrative – to Make America Great Again. He is awash with criticism, lawsuits and attempted assassinations but carries on regardless of attacks, endless lies and defamation. He hasn’t swung a chainsaw around but, with a bit of mongrel in him, he has swung a sledgehammer figuratively against the walls of hostility, the swamp, entrenched structures, illegal immigration and wasteful spending. Unlike some weak and indecisive leaders, who seem to only mark time and perhaps take a chisel occasionally to make a small dent somewhere, Trump smashes corrupt bureaucracy, institutions, the MSM, inefficiency, the powerful opposition elite and perceived enemies.
The US economy has shown resilience and some positive developments under President Trump’s second term (since January 2025).
Bea.gov
GDP growth under President Trumps second term grew 2.2 per cent for the calendar year 2025, down from 2.8 per cent in 2024.
Economist.com
Unemployment is still low historically.
Siepr.standford.edu
Headline inflation moderated from 3.0 per cent around inauguration to lows near 2.4 per cent in early 2026 (CPI), though it […] later rose (e.g., to 3.3 per cent in March 26), due to energy price spikes from geopolitical events of Iran war related.
Economist.com
A chainsaw and a sledgehammer represent strong, masculinity and full-on direct action. And the mongrel bit represents, grit, toughness, determination and a rough edge, neither polished nor refined but tenacious with a bit of aggression in them.
National, the main conservative party and the party leader are in trouble if you follow the polls. New Zealand’s conservative voters are in desperate need of a strong prime minister. A full on powerful one might be too much for laid-back nice Kiwis. A strong leader with a fair bit of mongrel, but always ‘polished’ with a ‘refined’ personal attire and presentation, who can challenge the opposition, especially when it comes to debating in the House and dealing with the biased left MSM, might be increasingly acceptable to Kiwi voters.
Make New Zealand First Again Winston Peters?
