Sturzenegger “It is the new Vélez Sarsfield”, he launched Miguel Ángel Pichetto last Monday the 25th on the La Nación + screen. The irony was because Federico Sturzenegger was the author of the super DNU that President Javier Milei signed, and which aims to be a new and broad social contract, without going through Congress. One of the most controversial points is that Sturzenegger’s writing changes fundamental laws such as the Civil and Commercial Code, which had been reformed in 2015 and which had prominent judges working on it such as the former minister of the Court of Mendoza, Aída. Kemelmajer, in addition to the then president of the Supreme Court, Ricardo Lorenzetti, who headed the commission dedicated to that topic. This point is relevant because, once the DNU comes into force, the first repercussions will arise from the Justice, especially from the different federal courts in Administrative Litigation that could stop the application of the decree partially or totally. If there are conflicting rulings between different judges, the natural path will be the Supreme Court. What will Lorenzetti think about this attempt to modify via DNU the Civil Code on which he worked for more than three years?
The Minister of the Court is not the only detractor who earned Sturzenegger in recent years. The former president of the Central Bank has a reputation for having few friends and many hates, starting with Mauricio Macri, who fired him from his Government for not having been able to contain the rise of the dollar. Another one who doesn’t want it is Santiago Caputo, President Milei’s main advisor, who considers him lazy in legislative matters. In fact, one of the most widespread criticisms that the super DNU faces is that it has errors in legislative technique, for example, having forgotten to write that the decree came into force upon its publication. Due to this omission, they had to wait eight business days from its publication for it to begin to be considered valid.
Figuration
Sturzenegger was working on this decree throughout 2023 at the request of Patricia Bullrich. In the days before the President’s announcement, a video went viral in which the economist sends Bullrich two piles of A4 sheets telling him that they consist of 300 laws that are repealed and as many others that are modified. The origin of the video leak is unknown, but it is attributed to two people: to Bullrich, to keep the credit that the original State reform project was part of his government program; and also to Sturzenegger himself, to remain as the father of the reform. In any case, the day after the announcement he went on a media tour to explain in depth the doubts about the decree.
Sturzenegger’s DNU There is no precedent – in democracy – of such a profound reform via decree. In addition to the Civil Code, the Mining Code is also reformed, the energy, labor, justice and health laws are modified, the airline policy is reformed and regulations such as company, supply or rental laws are repealed.
There are contradictions such as when Sturzenegger says, in the recitals, that “the foreign trade of our country requires a strong reform for its strengthening and promotion”, and immediately repeals the Trade Promotion Law. Libertarians don’t like being told how to promote. Another criticism of Sturzenegger is that his DNU does not justify the urgency for each of the reforms he proposes. What is the urgency to allow sports corporations, or to repeal the land law?
Risks
This paradigm shift in the social contract via DNU sets a dangerous precedent because, if each president who takes office decides to change the Constitution by decree, Congress would no longer be needed. Here there is another contradiction in Sturzenegger’s DNU, because the constitution of 1853, which seeks to emulate Milei, provides that the one who legislates is the Congress and the one who executes and administers is the President. The argument for not going through Congress is that they do not have enough legislators to carry out such a reform, but in this case the discussion becomes different, because winning an election does not mean that one can govern by decree.
In parallel with the DNI, in the last week of the year Milei sent to Congress the State reform bill in which Sturzenegger also participated. He called it “Law of bases and starting points for the freedom of Argentines”, in reference to the text of the father of local liberalism, Juan Bautista Alberdi, “Bases and starting points for the political organization of the Argentine Republic”. If the creativity to achieve parliamentary consensus is the same as to title the laws, they are going to lose the legislative battle in the first commission meeting.
