For any Peronist leader, especially of the old school, gestures are often more relevant than words. That is why when this morning, Miguel Pichetto appeared with Horacio Rodríguez Larreta in a management activity, in terms of security, but also in the campaign, the message within Together for Change was clear.
"I believe in enlargement," Pichetto said, and "this is what links me to Horacio," he added. He would then further clarify his position: "I don't think Argentina has to build a radicalized path either on the right or on the left." The recipient of his message was Patricia Bullrich.
Everything originated with Pichetto's rapid position in favor of the entry of the Cordovan and Peronist governor Juan Schiaretti to Together for Change. It could not be otherwise from someone who is not only a Peronist but who responded quickly to the surprise call of Mauricio Macri in 2019 to be his running mate, 10 days before the closing of the lists.
Miguel Angel Pichetto arriving at the meeting of Together for Change to discuss the additions to the coalition. Photo: Rafael Mario Quinteros
Beyond the public expressions that began to occur just over the weekend, the incorporation of the Cordovan had already been talking several days ago among those who were interested: Gerardo Morales, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta and Pichetto himself. Later the Civic Coalition of Elisa Carrio would join.
This caused some discomfort in Macri and his entourage. Some sources indicate that there were calls from the former president's entourage to Pichetto to try to convince him, even in harsh terms. Close to the current director of the Auditor General of the Nation (AGN) they deny it and assure that he has not spoken with Macri for a long time, but that he will do so in the next few hours.
In private, Pichetto told one of his closest leaders within the Federal Republican Encounter that he had called him Bullrich over the weekend. "First it was a discussion about why allow Schiaretti into the coalition. But then it became a location for Patricia to Miguel, so that he could decide which side he was on, whether with her or with Larreta," he said.
The former senator privately told Bullrich that she could have a meeting to incorporate Fernando Burlando into her space, but the coalition could add Schiaretti.
Patricia Bullrich and her intern with Rodríguez Larreta.
That situation exasperated Pichetto much more when it transpired that he had asked Bullrich to be his deputy. "I would never do such a thing, it's a big lie!" they bellowed around them. Although they avoided blaming, directly, the presidential candidate, they indicated that she only had two meetings in the last time, of which Federico Pinedo was a witness.
In the larretismo they are enthusiastic about Pichetto's approach. A sector of that space imagines him as a candidate for senator for the province of Buenos Aires, with a key role in an eventual cabinet of Rodríguez Larreta, or even fantasize about him being the running mate of the Buenos Aires mayor, as happened with Macri in 2019. For now, everything is in the realm of speculation.
See also
Luis Juez went by surprise to the meeting of Together for Change and rejected the incorporation of Schiaretti: "I will not tolerate it"
See also
