It's an explosive cocktail of wage cuts, collapsed consumption, and soaring energy costs.
En la provincia más poblada de Argentina, el ministro Carlos Bianco ofreció una doble señal: hacia adentro, la advertencia de una crisis fiscal sin precedentes; hacia afuera, la figura de Axel Kicillof como referencia ineludible para 2027. En el fondo de ambos mensajes late una misma tensión: la de un territorio que sostiene buena parte de la economía nacional mientras siente que el Estado central le retira el piso. La historia que se cuenta desde Buenos Aires no es solo de números, sino de un modelo de país en disputa.
- El gobierno bonaerense perdió el equivalente a la mitad de su presupuesto anual: mil obras paralizadas y programas eliminados suman veintidós billones de pesos que simplemente dejaron de llegar.
- La recaudación cae al quince por ciento mensual y seis mil empresas cerraron desde que Milei asumió, convirtiendo la crisis fiscal en una crisis económica con rostro humano.
- Bianco describe un 'cóctel explosivo': salarios recortados, importaciones sin freno, tipo de cambio apreciado y energía cara que vacían el consumo y ahogan a las empresas.
- La provincia responde con demandas judiciales —siete causas ante la Corte Suprema, con otra en camino— pero el daño sobre la gente ocurre ahora, sin esperar sentencias.
- En medio del desastre, Bianco planta una bandera política: Kicillof es una 'referencia obligada' para 2027, aunque el gobernador todavía está en fase de construcción, no de campaña.
Carlos Bianco, ministro de gobierno de la provincia de Buenos Aires, eligió una entrevista radial matutina para enviar dos mensajes simultáneos. El primero, político: Axel Kicillof es una referencia obligada cuando se piensa en la presidencia de 2027. El segundo, económico: la provincia atraviesa una crisis fiscal de proporciones históricas. Bianco fue cuidadoso con los tiempos —este no es año de candidaturas, aclaró— pero la señal quedó lanzada.
Sobre las finanzas provinciales, el tono de Bianco fue de alarma contenida. Buenos Aires es, en términos relativos a su población, el gobierno provincial más pobre del país. El gobierno nacional paralizó mil obras de infraestructura y eliminó programas que servían a la provincia. El valor acumulado de esas pérdidas asciende a veintidós billones de pesos, cifra equivalente a la mitad del presupuesto anual bonaerense. La recaudación, que ya caía diez por ciento mensual a fines del año pasado, empeoró al quince por ciento. Bianco llamó a la situación 'genuinamente compleja', eligiendo las palabras con cuidado.
En el plano económico más amplio, el ministro no escatimó en dureza. Desde que Milei asumió, aproximadamente seis mil empresas cerraron en la provincia. Los salarios se recortaron, el consumo se derrumbó, las importaciones entraron sin restricciones y los costos energéticos se dispararon. Bianco lo llamó un 'cóctel explosivo', una imagen que condensa tanto el diagnóstico técnico como el sufrimiento concreto de quienes dependen de esa economía.
Sobre la disputa con la ciudad de Buenos Aires por el costo de atención a personas en situación de calle, Bianco rechazó la premisa del reclamo porteño: quienes no tienen vivienda no tienen residencia comprobable en ningún distrito, mientras que tres millones de bonaerenses viajan cada día a la ciudad a trabajar y generar riqueza. El desequilibrio, sugirió, corre en sentido contrario.
Al final de la entrevista, Bianco usó un lenguaje inusualmente directo: la Nación le está robando a Buenos Aires. La provincia respondió con siete demandas ante la Corte Suprema, con una octava en camino. Los tribunales pueden dar razón a la provincia, pero el daño sobre la economía y sobre la gente ya está ocurriendo.
Carlos Bianco, the government minister of Buenos Aires province, sat down for an early-morning radio interview and offered a careful assessment of his boss's political future. Governor Axel Kicillof, he said, is an "obligatory reference" when anyone thinks about who might run for president in 2027. But Bianco was precise about the timing: this is not the year for candidacies or campaigns. Kicillof is in a phase of political construction. The decision, Bianco made clear, belongs to the governor alone.
The conversation quickly turned to the province's finances, and here Bianco's tone shifted to something closer to alarm. Buenos Aires is broke—or rather, it is the poorest provincial government in Argentina relative to its population, and it has fewer state employees per capita than all but one other province. The national government, under President Milei, has cut funding across the board, but Buenos Aires has been hit with particular force. A thousand infrastructure projects have been halted. The current value of those stalled works, combined with the elimination of national programs that served the province, adds up to twenty-two trillion pesos. That is roughly half of Buenos Aires's entire annual budget, simply gone.
The revenue picture has deteriorated sharply. Tax collection was falling by ten percent month-over-month through the end of last year and into early 2025. Now it has worsened to a fifteen percent decline. Bianco described the situation as genuinely complex, a word he seemed to choose with care. When asked about criticism of how the province manages its resources, he did not defend the province's spending. Instead, he restated the structural reality: Buenos Aires is starved relative to its size and economic importance.
The conversation touched on a dispute with the city government over the cost of services for homeless people. Jorge Macri, the chief of government in Buenos Aires city, has complained that the province should bear some of that expense. Bianco rejected the premise. People without housing have no residence in either the province or the city, he said. There is no evidence they are from Buenos Aires province. Meanwhile, three million people from the province travel to the capital every day to work and generate value there. The imbalance, he suggested, cuts the other way.
On the economy more broadly, Bianco used stark language. The situation is calamitous. Since Milei took office, approximately six thousand businesses have closed in Buenos Aires province. The causes are interconnected: wages have been cut, consumption has collapsed, companies have no customers. The government has opened the borders to imports without restriction, the currency has appreciated, and energy costs have soared. Bianco called it an explosive cocktail—a phrase that captured both the technical economic reality and the human toll beneath it.
When asked about electoral reform—specifically whether the province should adopt a single paper ballot system—Bianco saw no need for change. The current system works well. In the last election, more than eight million votes were cast and there were eleven complaints. He called it the most transparent election in the province's history. The implication was clear: if something is not broken, do not fix it.
Toward the end of the interview, Bianco used language that was unusually direct about the federal government. The nation is robbing Buenos Aires, he said. It stopped a thousand projects, cut programs, and kept resources that had been committed to the province. Buenos Aires has responded by filing lawsuits. Seven cases have already been brought before the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation, and another is coming. The province is fighting back through the courts, but the damage to the economy and to the people who depend on it is happening now.
Citas Notables
The governor is in a phase of political construction. This is not the year for candidacies or campaigns.— Carlos Bianco, Buenos Aires government minister
The nation is robbing Buenos Aires. It stopped a thousand projects, cut programs, and kept resources that had been committed to the province.— Carlos Bianco
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
When Bianco says Kicillof is a "mandatory reference" for 2027, is he actually saying the governor will run, or is he leaving the door open?
He's leaving it open deliberately. He's saying Kicillof is too important a figure not to consider, but he's also saying the governor hasn't decided and won't decide this year. It's a way of keeping the option alive without committing to it.
The numbers he cited—twenty-two trillion pesos, six thousand closed businesses, fifteen percent revenue decline—do those paint a picture of a province in free fall?
They do, but it's important to understand what caused it. These aren't failures of provincial management. They're the direct result of federal policy: cutting funding, halting projects, opening imports, letting the currency appreciate. Bianco is saying the province is being squeezed from above.
He mentioned three million people commuting from the province to the capital every day. Why bring that up in a conversation about homeless people?
It's a counterargument. He's saying Buenos Aires province generates enormous economic value for the city, and yet the city is complaining about the cost of services for people who don't even live there. It's a way of saying: look at the real flow of resources and labor between these two places.
The phrase "explosive cocktail"—was that hyperbole or an accurate description of what's happening?
It's accurate. When you cut wages, people stop buying things. When companies can't sell, they close. When imports flood in and the currency is strong, local producers can't compete. When energy costs spike, everything becomes more expensive. Those things happening at once create a cascading crisis.
Why would Bianco reject the need for electoral reform if the system is working?
Because electoral reform is often a tool used by whoever is losing power. If you're in government and you say the system is transparent and fair, you're defending the status quo. It's a political move, not necessarily a statement about what's best for democracy.