Juan Perón served as the President of Argentina between 1946 and 1955, and again for nine months just before his death in 1974. Despite dying nearly half a century ago, he still largely defines Argentine political discourse, and even many policy debates still revolve around whether single policies are sufficiently "peronist".

This bizarre state of affairs is made stranger still by Perón's distinctly mixed record as leader, presiding over a considerable fall in Argentina's economic prospects. The question of why this is the case is the central topic of today's episode.

My guest for this conversation is Jill Hedges, who works as Deputy Director of Analysis at Oxford Analytica, a geopolitical advisory firm. Jill is the author of various books about Argentina, including Juan Perón: The Life of the People’s Colonel. 

In this wide ranging conversation, we also discuss the importance of the military in Argentine politics, the truth about Argentina’s harbouring of members of the European far-right after World War II, and the central role of football in Argentine culture.