Exceptional Argentina Di Tella, Glaeser and Llach - Thomas Piketty

policies would, supposedly, eviscerate their power. By vilifying a set of capitalists, he could
justify the expropriation of their resources, which could then, supposedly, be used to benefit the
people. By vilifying foreigners, he could also justify closing the economy to outsiders.
Perón’s form of populism is not unique, but it does seem to have had particularly long-lasting
effects. The essay documents Argentinian beliefs during the 1990s and differentiates the beliefs
of Peronists from other Argentinians. While the Peronists are typically seen as being similar to
the Democrats within the American political spectrum, or the Labour Party in the U.K., in some
dimensions like income or education, their beliefs are closer to those held by the more
conservative parties.
The essay documents that Peronists and non-Peronists are both more likely to believe that
poverty comes from an unfair society than laziness and that the country is run by a few big
interests. In Argentina, as in many developing countries, the whole electorate is tilted to the left.
But the Peronists actually look more Republican than their opponents. It seems that core Peronist
beliefs are even more common among non-Peronists. As such, Argentina is split between the
Peronists and the leftists, who have even less faith in the system (and in capitalism) than the
Peronists. That is somewhat surprising given that the non-Peronists are somewhat wealthier than
the Peronists.
The paper ends with a short model explaining the political value of Peronist sentiments. A
tendency to feel anger at exploitation encourages the voters to support policies that are
particularly harmful for business. Peronist beliefs then encourage this anger. Perhaps the essay’s
core message is that not only Peronist policies have generated their own dynamics, as
emphasized by Galiani and Somaini, but also Peronist beliefs continue to influence Argentina
and may help to perpetuate policies that limit economic growth.