from The Wall Street Journal

President Cristina Kirchner’s emergency surgery for thyroid cancer puts a spotlight on her vice president, Amado Boudou, a guitar-playing former economy minister who will run the country for at least three weeks in January during her hospitalization and convalescence.

In the campaign leading up to Mrs. Kirchner’s landslide October re-election, the telegenic Mr. Boudou’s penchant for partying with rock stars and other celebrities often overshadowed his policy ideas.

But analysts say the leftist Mrs. Kirchner brought Mr. Boudou onto the ticket precisely because he lacked the political heft within the ruling Peronist party to emerge as a potential rival …

Read More (subscription required):http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204632204577126791762136140.html?mod=ITP_pageone_2