Chavez wins re-election by wide margin

[citizen snips]

CARACAS, Venezuela - President Hugo Chavez, an outspoken opponent of the United States who has used Venezuela's oil wealth to give handouts to the poor, won re-election to another six-year term by a wide margin on Sunday, official results showed.

With 78 percent of voting stations reporting, Chavez had 61 percent to 38 percent for challenger Manuel Rosales, said Tibisay Lucena, head of the country's elections council. Chavez had nearly 6 million votes versus 3.7 million for Rosales, according to the partial tally.

Turnout was 62 percent, according to an official bulletin of results, making Chavez's lead insurmountable.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061204/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/venezuela_election

[acmavm]

1. bush** just can't get a break, can he? I bet the whiny frat boy is

just making Laura's evening hell.

[ianwood]

11. viva

la chavez

[Purveyor]

2. Democracy is on the march!!! n/t

[zann725]

90. So Venezualans' didn't vote Diebold, I suppose? If they had,Chimpy would've ousted Chavez for sure

n/t

[gorbal]

3. So people can shut up about his people not liking him...

But what gets to me is all these news articles calling him "Anti-US" Since when does being a political foe of Bush make one "Anti-US"? Would we say the democrats were "Anti-US"?

[INDIA]

5. Maybe it was his comment about..

"bringing down the American Empire", instead of saying "bring down the Bush administration", or his close alliance with Iran, to which America is the "great Satan."

[BrokenBeyondRepair]

35. bush administration is a symptom..

american empire is the disease

[gorbal]

40. I wish they would cover the pro-us things he says

But they sell more weapons when things stay tense so I guess money trumps the truth.

[INDIA]

53. I'd love to see some of those quotes...

I'm not being sarcastic either, I'd really like to see some of the pro-American things Chavez has said in the past. It would give me some peace of mind about the guy. Do you have some links you could send me to?

[papau]

45. bringing down America's Corporate controlled government Empire is bad?

I'll concede the Iran point if that alliance is ever more than a the enemy of my enemy is my friend for now situation.

[INDIA]

51. If "bringing down the empire.."

(whatever the hell that actually means), entails damaging the economy, stock market crash, inflation, unemployment, he can go to hell. Call me crazy, but I like the present economic situation this country is in, although I recognize it is on thin ice. You can complain all day about how America takes advantage of poor countries economically, but we're no more guilty than Europe, Russia, or Asia in terms of economic dealings. If Chavez succeeded in "bringing down the empire" and the US went into a recession, or even depression, and you lost your job, how would you feel about him then?


The OTHER school of thought is he meant our military empire, which I guess means getting out of Iraq, but we as Americans are well on our way to doing that ourselves(Nov 7th) without some foreign leader and his anti-semite buddies butting their noses in to our business.

[1932]

54. Countries like Luxembourg, Switzerland, Sweden are not empires yet have great economies

and deliver a lot of wealth to working people.

In fact, history shows that empire tends to be the thing that places countries' economies in precarious positions. Spending too much money on the use of violent force (or the threat of violent force) to bring wealth in from the far flung provinces isn't good, and the polarization of wealth and power that empire both produces and requires to sustain itself isn't so great for democracy either.

[Judi Lynn]

70. You prove daily intelligence is a real asset. The ability to understand,

to grasp, to perceive, for chrissakes, can keep you from being an absolute a-hole.

I really wish others had the same ability to concentrate, focus, read, and think. It wouldn't get nearly so loud on these threads, if that were the case!

What you said about wealth and power was excellent.

[1932]

81. It's really energizing to find other people here who care and who do

great research and have great insights on these Chavez threads.

[papau]

76. No one wants US citizens hurt - but I read bringing down the "corporate" empire

that gets our CIA teams, our secret Pentagon teams, messing with Venezuelan affairs.

Bring down I read as making the US companies regret that they ever pushed for such intervention.

I don't know about you, but a "US" (US is in quotes because their is no loyalty to America in US incorporated companies) oil company gaining more price control has rarely led to any improvement in my economic, or for that mater my human rights, situation.

[gorbal]

82. Well we shouldn't take advantage of poor countries, period

And we shouldn't jump of a cliff if Europe, Russia or Asia does either. On our present economic situation-Our country is so in the pocket of the cooperations we might as well use monopoly money as currency.

Bush has pretty much "Brought down the Empire" himself. He didn't really need much help.

[Vidar]

4. Democracy thrives in South America.

[Idioteque]

6. If the people of Venezuela like him, they can have him.

I know I wouldn't vote for him. He's an authoritarian and a socialist. AKA bad on economic issues, social issues, and civil liberties. No thanks.

[w4rma]

15. President Chavez and his political party are about as pro-democracy as anyone can be.

Flanker wrote:
Venezuelan election day procedures and audits - Very detailed

I made a detailed post at dkos http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/11/28/171646/44 and thought you guys might want to read it:

Generally I have seen some cheap points being scored here about Venezuelan elections, normally they mention that we use electronic voting without any details hoping to ensnare those that against black box voting. But they omit tons of details that ensure that our elections are IMHO the best run elections in the world. I recently helped write an article in wikipedia about the 2006 Venezuelan presidential election There are tons of details over there amd I recommend reading it, but I will stick to the issue at hand after the break...
Intro
You must enter an Intro for your Diary Entry between 300 and 1150 characters long.

Generally I have seen some cheap points being scored here at dailykos about Venezuelan elections, normally they mention that we use electronic voting without any details hoping to ensnare those that against black box voting. But they omit tons of details that ensure that our elections are IMHO the best run elections in the world. I recently helped write an article in wikipedia about the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venezuelan_presidential_election%2C_2006 There are tons of details over there amd I recommend reading it, but I will stick to the issue at hand after the break...


Paper ballots

All machines are standardized (smartmatic machines) and they ALL print paper ballots, inspected and deposited in a box by voters, which are later used to to audit 54% of all machines. This is done by law whether the margin be 20 points or 500 votes. Saving the loser the embarrasment of calling for a recount. An audit is also better than a recount because every single deviation (even by one vote) is noted and scrutinized, rather than having a recount erase the first count.

Complete transperancy

Every single vote audit is observed by well trained citizens (give credit to the opposition for that) but also international observers including the EU, OAS, Mercosur, and Carter Center. Also all machines are audited beforehand by specialized technitians on all sides.

Results in less than a day

How many elections are still up for grabs from the midterms? obviously the most important advantage of electronic voting is precise results no longer than a few hours, the only thing that takes time after polls close are the inmediate audits.

Full audits after the election

Granted with less oversight, every single detail is audited months after the election.

Here is what I wrote in wikipedia that is more detalied.

Electoral Audits

Even though international observers are present the CNE instituted an open and public series of audits of the vote results. Each electoral center will likely be equiped with multiple touch screen machines each defined as a voting table, after the vote is cast each machine prints out a paper ballot which is inspected by the voter and deposited in a paper ballot box of his table. The machines are disconnected from any network until the polls close.<22>

Tally scrutinization

After the polls close the following event performed step by step.

* Polls closed
* Tally scrutinization announced
* Each machine prints an original tally sheet, each has a voter total and the number of votes cast for each candidate of that particular machine/table.
* Each machine is connected to the network and the results are sent to the vote counting center
* 9 extra tally sheets are printed and distributed to staff and the six representatives of the candidates that recieved the most votes.
* With the original tally sheet in hand the total number of votes cast is compared to the sign up sheet or electoral notebook, finally the electoral ballots are counted one by one to see if they add up to the total. Any anamoly is mentioned in the tally sheet report, signed by staff and auditors. Which is then sealed and given to the military for delivery to the CNE.

Source CNE<22>

Random paper ballot audit

Once the tally scrutinization is complete the staff proceeds to perform the random paper ballot audit of 54.31% of the machines. Each voting center can have anywhere from 1 voting machine to more than 10, the staff randomly selects the tables/machines drawing a number out of a paper hat, the size of the draw is dependant on the number of tables/machines.

Number of Machines Number of Machines to be Audited Total Machines audited
1 to 2 1 5,795
3 to 5 2 6,002
6 to 8 3 4,011
9 to 10 4 980
More than 10 5 770

Source CNE<22>
Audited Total Machine Universe Percentage audited
17,558 32,331 54.31%

Source CNE<22>

The following procedure occurs step by step

* Polls closed
* Tally scrutinization finishes
* Random paper ballot audit announced
* The machines are randomly selected drawing numbers out of a paper hat
* The machine's serial number is recorded
* The corresponding paper ballot box is selected and opened
* The paper ballots results for each candidate are openly counted
* With the original tally printed from the electronic results, both results are audited
* Any anomaly (even if by one vote) is recorded in the audit report
* The origninal audit report is signed by staff and observers, officially sealed and handed to the military for delivery to the CNE
* Copies are handed over to the representatives of the two highest vote getters.

Source CNE<22>

The whole source is this file from the Consejo Nacional Electoral If you can read spanish there are tons more details there.

Here are also a few pictures from national newspapers



Hat tip to http://oilwars.blogspot.com /

PS Sequoia is not Smartmatic, The later owns the former but it was a recent acquisition, I don't know what system Sequoia uses.

[Bonescrat]

43. Oooo nice rebuttal. Game, set, match methinks. nt.

[gulfcoastliberal]

21. I dunno; I heard the rich in Venezuela have never been richer, as evidenced by...

...record sales of private jets.

[EFerrari]

84. Sure. That's why they keep trying to kill him.

[papau]

47. He's good on social & economic justice issues but forgoes long term planning &

fighting corruption.

Civil liberty has never been better - except those poor media owners are being asked to obey something close to our pre-Reagan Fairness Doctrine for the media.

Is Bush 10 times or 100 times more authoritarian than Chavez ? - I think we are approaching 100 times as the correct answer.

[1932]

56. Actually, the knock on him by right that he's too worried about long term planning

Chavez invests a great deal in long-term infrastructure projects and buys a lot of bonds from his neighboring countries as an effort to stem inflation in Venezuela and to build up the region, which will build up aggregate demand, and create a better foundation for a thriving middle class over the long term.

The opposition candidate ran on the argument that Chavez should take all the oil wealth and give it to the poor today (even though, that would create tremendous inflation and not do anything to create a sound foundation for the economy).

[papau]

77. Good grief - our media reported the situation ass backwards - he sounds like an

excellent planer - the economists chosen for talking heads were all saying he starts something, wastes money on it, and then it dies

plus they blamed him for the possible inflation caused by providing more wealth to the poor but not providing more jobs (that one I did not understand - so I read it as unconcerned about inflation).

[happydreams]

60. If he's a socialist he's a democratic socialist.

[Judi Lynn]

71. We've both seen people passing through here designating him as a "communist," as well.

These words are explosive emotionally to wingers. They LOVE to toss them about, like dogs with a new toy, but they never seem to learn much about them.

[Tight_rope]

65. I would take Chavez over Bush any day.

[Cha]

75. Yeah, real bad on economic issues..

"Venezuela’s Economic Boom Buoys Chávez"

snip~

" CARACAS, Venezuela, Dec. 2 — To understand why Hugo Chávez seems set for victory in Sunday’s presidential election and a strengthened mandate for what he calls a socialist revolution, consider the vigor here of that most capitalist of institutions: the stock exchange."


http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/03/world/americas/03venezuela.html?_r=1&hp&ex=1165208400&en=5e6c1df7ce1c864c&ei=5094&partner=homepage&oref=slogin

[Old and In the Way]

7. Glad to hear this.

We've spent 100 years subverting democracy in South America...glad to see a real leader of the people overcome the institutional biases against real democracy.

[LynnTheDem]

8. Many intelligent people in Venezuela.

The "haves and have mores" aren't happy, of course.

[INDIA]

9. And by "haves" you mean

anybody who isn't in desperate poverty? I don't think that's an accurate portrayal of the situation.

[LynnTheDem]

10. Then you've never lived there.

[INDIA]

12. I meant that around 38% of the electorate (so far)..

has not voted for Chavez. I know that almost 38% of Venezuala isn't made up of the "haves or have mores." You're making it seem like the only people to be against Chavez are the middle class, rich and ultra rich, which I don't think is the case.

[rman]

16. Well, the poor don't have much reason to oppose Chavez,

nor do the rich have much reason to support him.
So what do you think is the make-up of that 38%?

[INDIA]

18. I'm damn sure that 40% isn't entirely made up of rich 'fat cats"...

as some here would like me to believe. My main point: It isn't just those selfish rich right-wing bastards voting against Cahvez. That's my point, nothing more than that.

[antiimperialist]

20. Moderates supported Chavez

And economy was not the single issue driving voters' intentions.
So it is not valid to simplify everything as "rich vs. poor".

[JNelson6563]

38. Then there are the stupid ones

Just like we have those in America who vote against their own best interest by supporting the likes of Bush. Many want to be part of the kool kids krowd (aka the haves and have-mores) and so voting like them is part of it.

Really.

Julie

[INDIA]

50. So voting against Chavez means you're "stupid"...

too stupid to know what's good for you? Somehow I think it might be a teensy bit more complicated than that.

[JNelson6563]

55. Nice mischaracterization

My point was some in Venezuala (have-nots who didn't vote for Chavez) are like those in the US who want to be a part of the crowd that benefits from the right wing administration (a.k.a. the haves and have-mores) so they emulate them, including with the way they vote.

Sorry for the run-on thought there but apparently you require it to be broken down into minute detail or are prone to mischaracterizing the statements.

Julie

[EFerrari]

85. And you might be wrong.

[papau]

48. 34% are poor working class living on less than $3 a day - plus middle class that

are finally making money (stock market up 129% last year) - leaves just who, besides the rich and the workers they order and threaten with loss of jobs if they vote for Chavez, that is against him?

Chavez's strongest support among the poor and working class in a country where 34 percent live on less than $3 a day does not seem hard to understand.

[INDIA]

52. no, what DOESN'T

make sense is how you claim that almost 40% of the country is made up of the ultra-rich and intimidated minions of the ultra-rich, because those are the ONLY people who could possibly vote against the Dear Leader.

It isn't Monaco, it's Venezuela. The percentage of rich in third world countries is typically much lower than those of industrialized nations (like America), yet you claim they make up a huge chunk of the electorate.

A lot of people are characterizing the anti-Chavez crowd as "selfish ultra rich fat cats." Well, considering around 4 in 10 people didn't vote for him, that just isn't possible. That's my point.

[PeaceProgProsp]

64. Most of that 40% might be the couch potatos who watch Telemundo

all day and believe the lies -- and they're probably very similar to their American cousins who watch Fox and vote for Bush in high percentages, even though he's only looking after the interests of about .5% of the population to the detriment of the other 99.5%.

[papau]

78. The rich's intimidation of their workers in many ways, incl. votes, is documented

But I agree with you - the 40% is not just rich plus intimidated workers.

There are those that think luck has nothing to do with success, and therefore feel being poor is a just reward for not working hard enough or smart enough.

There are a lot of freeloaders in this world and it is easy to move from disgust of the freeloader to voting GOP (or anti-Chavez) - and indeed the left does often go too easy on those living on handouts from the government, requiring no effort on their part to improve the situation.

But when 34% are worse than dirt poor - I'll give some slack to efforts that push getting them fed and housed over punishing those that take advantage of every attempt to help the poor and who never plan on getting off the dole.

[Warren Stupidity]

13. Good. The people of Venezuela have spoken. nt.

[Steepler0t]

14. Viva Chavez!

:bounce: :toast: :bounce: :toast: :bounce: :toast: :bounce:


:beer: :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer:

Yay for Democracy and the people!


Chavez would be the fourth leftist to win an election in Latin America in the last five weeks.

Not counting the ass kicking he got here in America, "Mr. Danger" must be sweating!


So when is the "Liberal media" gonna start predicting "Is this the Death of conservatism?" 24/7?

Oh well F'em!

[City67]

17. Did anyone read this

I ran across this a while back.

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1562009,00.html

Sorry i dont know how to make a link. I normally only read and dont post.

[antiimperialist]

19. What's your point?

Are you suggesting 5 million voters were forced to vote for Chavez?
The vote was secret. Not that they faced death sentence if they voted for Chavez.

[City67]

24. I wasnt suggesting anything of the sort

I just think we should have a well rounded world view. I have lived in Germany, Italy, Spain, Britain and Holland and things there werent at all the way you would hear back here. Knowledge is liberating.

[bvar22]

22. Quick Chavez Review:

*Healing the Sick

*Feeding the Hungry

*Sheltering the Homeless

*Educating the Ignorant

*Employing the Jobless

*Taxing Rich Global Corporations

*Demanding that a percentage of profits from foreign owned resource extraction industries be re-invested in Venezuela

....Yesss, I can see why so many in El Norte hate him. Why, if this spreads, America as we know it would cease to exist.


Viva Chavez!


The Democratic Party is a BIG TENT, but there is NO ROOM for those
who advance the agenda of THE RICH (Corporate Owners) at the EXPENSE of LABOR and the POOR.

[gorbal]

94. You know you are partly brainwashed when...

...all those good things sound unrealistic because you have been told they were for so long by our coorperate owned media.

[Nutmegger]

23. So can we drop this bunk that he's a dictator?

Even those on DU, enough. He's not a dictator. Read the Offical DU Chavez Debunking Thread.

[Warren Stupidity]

25. Oh no our contras will be back telling us how he is Jose Stalin. nt.

[fujiyama]

26. Assuming these elections were conducted fairly and freely

he has more of a mandate than Bush ever did.

[Heidi]

27. Kick. (nt)

[antiimperialist]

28. Rosales admits Chavez won

This from the Venezuelan newspaper (Spanish only) El Universal:

Rosales admits Chavez' triumph,

(11:29 PM) Rosales reconoce triunfo de Hugo Chávez

In short, Chavez' opponent said that the victory margin is smaller than was previously announced by the official electoral center (BS), but that accorindg to two exit polls hired by the opposition, Chavez indeed won.



At least he showed class.
http://www.eluniversal.com/2006/12/03/elecc_ava_03A811317.shtml

[ianwood]

29. Bad News for Dubya

Good news for rest of the world

[roody]

30. I admire Rosales' classy concession statements.

[w4rma]

31. As if he had a choice. It was almost a 2 to 1 slaughter and the voting system is very transparent.

Flanker wrote:
Venezuelan election day procedures and audits - Very detailed

I made a detailed post at dkos http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/11/28/171646/44 and thought you guys might want to read it:

Generally I have seen some cheap points being scored here about Venezuelan elections, normally they mention that we use electronic voting without any details hoping to ensnare those that against black box voting. But they omit tons of details that ensure that our elections are IMHO the best run elections in the world. I recently helped write an article in wikipedia about the 2006 Venezuelan presidential election There are tons of details over there amd I recommend reading it, but I will stick to the issue at hand after the break...
Intro
You must enter an Intro for your Diary Entry between 300 and 1150 characters long.

Generally I have seen some cheap points being scored here at dailykos about Venezuelan elections, normally they mention that we use electronic voting without any details hoping to ensnare those that against black box voting. But they omit tons of details that ensure that our elections are IMHO the best run elections in the world. I recently helped write an article in wikipedia about the http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venezuelan_presidential_election%2C_2006 There are tons of details over there amd I recommend reading it, but I will stick to the issue at hand after the break...


Paper ballots

All machines are standardized (smartmatic machines) and they ALL print paper ballots, inspected and deposited in a box by voters, which are later used to to audit 54% of all machines. This is done by law whether the margin be 20 points or 500 votes. Saving the loser the embarrasment of calling for a recount. An audit is also better than a recount because every single deviation (even by one vote) is noted and scrutinized, rather than having a recount erase the first count.

Complete transperancy

Every single vote audit is observed by well trained citizens (give credit to the opposition for that) but also international observers including the EU, OAS, Mercosur, and Carter Center. Also all machines are audited beforehand by specialized technitians on all sides.

Results in less than a day

How many elections are still up for grabs from the midterms? obviously the most important advantage of electronic voting is precise results no longer than a few hours, the only thing that takes time after polls close are the inmediate audits.

Full audits after the election

Granted with less oversight, every single detail is audited months after the election.

Here is what I wrote in wikipedia that is more detalied.

Electoral Audits

Even though international observers are present the CNE instituted an open and public series of audits of the vote results. Each electoral center will likely be equiped with multiple touch screen machines each defined as a voting table, after the vote is cast each machine prints out a paper ballot which is inspected by the voter and deposited in a paper ballot box of his table. The machines are disconnected from any network until the polls close.<22>

Tally scrutinization

After the polls close the following event performed step by step.

* Polls closed
* Tally scrutinization announced
* Each machine prints an original tally sheet, each has a voter total and the number of votes cast for each candidate of that particular machine/table.
* Each machine is connected to the network and the results are sent to the vote counting center
* 9 extra tally sheets are printed and distributed to staff and the six representatives of the candidates that recieved the most votes.
* With the original tally sheet in hand the total number of votes cast is compared to the sign up sheet or electoral notebook, finally the electoral ballots are counted one by one to see if they add up to the total. Any anamoly is mentioned in the tally sheet report, signed by staff and auditors. Which is then sealed and given to the military for delivery to the CNE.

Source CNE<22>

Random paper ballot audit

Once the tally scrutinization is complete the staff proceeds to perform the random paper ballot audit of 54.31% of the machines. Each voting center can have anywhere from 1 voting machine to more than 10, the staff randomly selects the tables/machines drawing a number out of a paper hat, the size of the draw is dependant on the number of tables/machines.

Number of Machines Number of Machines to be Audited Total Machines audited
1 to 2 1 5,795
3 to 5 2 6,002
6 to 8 3 4,011
9 to 10 4 980
More than 10 5 770

Source CNE<22>
Audited Total Machine Universe Percentage audited
17,558 32,331 54.31%

Source CNE<22>

The following procedure occurs step by step

* Polls closed
* Tally scrutinization finishes
* Random paper ballot audit announced
* The machines are randomly selected drawing numbers out of a paper hat
* The machine's serial number is recorded
* The corresponding paper ballot box is selected and opened
* The paper ballots results for each candidate are openly counted
* With the original tally printed from the electronic results, both results are audited
* Any anomaly (even if by one vote) is recorded in the audit report
* The origninal audit report is signed by staff and observers, officially sealed and handed to the military for delivery to the CNE
* Copies are handed over to the representatives of the two highest vote getters.

Source CNE<22>

The whole source is this file from the Consejo Nacional Electoral If you can read spanish there are tons more details there.

Here are also a few pictures from national newspapers



Hat tip to http://oilwars.blogspot.com /

PS Sequoia is not Smartmatic, The later owns the former but it was a recent acquisition, I don't know what system Sequoia uses.

[1932]

44. My knee-jerk response was that it wasn't classy to say the CNE is lying about

the results.

[fujiyama]

32. Looks like it's pretty much confirned that he won

It's obvious he was elected more fairly than Bush ever was.

Maybe it's damn time, those like Jon Stewart stop referring to him as a dictator.

[bobbie]

33. Woo hoo! The best possible news. Let's celebrate with a conga line.

Yippee! Well done Venezuela. Congrats Prez Chavez.

[EFerrari]

86. Hugo! Hugo! Hugo!

What a relief to be able to cheer for a good guy. Honestly.

[bobbie]

89. Well said sfexpat2000

Can't do that here.

[mogster]

34. 'I voted'

[Judi Lynn]

37. He drove to the voting station in his little red car.

A color-coordinated El Presidente!

[gorbal]

95. Hehe, a Beetle

Is Chavez a hippy-child?

[demobrit]

36. Free Health Care and Free schooling

The Classic welfare state,popular policies get people re-elected

[JNelson6563]

39. I think this is good news!

:toast:

[wakeme2008]

41. Oh Bushie... 61% to 38% now that's a MANDATE

:)

[Joanne98]

42. Chavez has a mandate!

[NotGivingUp]

46. Hooray! Go, Hugo!

[Joe Bacon]

49. Damn Those Paper Ballots!

:sarcasm: mode now off

[The Magistrate]

57. This Is Excellent News, Sir!

A real pleasure to read first thing in the morning!

[bemildred]

58. "Landslide". Chavez wins re-election in a landslide.

"Wide margin" my ass.

[Judi Lynn]

59. An End to Interventionism in Venezuela

12-04-06

An End to Interventionism in Venezuela
By Nikolas Kozloff

~snip~
U.S. meddling in the current election smacks of earlier American gunboat diplomacy. In addition to aiding the opposition, U.S. officials have developed ties to individual politicians. The Venezuelan attorney general says (Ambassador) Brownfield had a close relationship to Rosales and frequently traveled to Zulia. If Chavez is right and the Bush administration is encouraging secession, this cynical American strategy will most likely anger Chavez's most determined followers in Zulia.

The president's support in Zulia state is not insignificant. In recent years, the Bolivarian Circles, pro-Chavez grassroots groups that lobby the Venezuelan government for economic support, have expanded. According to Umberto Silvio Beltran, Zulia regional coordinator of the Bolivarian Circles, there are approximately 180,000 people involved in Circles in Zulia.

Chavez has good reason to believe the United States was involved in the 2002 coup. He has thus far presented no concrete proof of U.S. meddling in Zulia, but he is justifiably paranoid about American intentions.

What is most needed now is a less interventionist policy in Venezuela for the long term. The Democrats, having retaken Congress, could not only cut funding to the Venezuelan opposition but also hold hearings concerning the April 2002 coup. Such moves might ameliorate strained relations with Venezuela.

Such a conciliatory policy is sorely needed. Since the presidential term in Venezuela lasts six years, Chavez will be a force to be reckoned with. It is time for liberal Democrats in the House and Senate to stand up to the Bush administration and foreign policy hawks in their own party and restore a sense of rationality in our Venezuela policy.
(snip/)

http://www.hnn.us/articles/32424.html

[bvar22]

61. Agree!....Unfortunately, the "Establishment Dems" are hostile to Hugo.

http://www.globalexchange.org/countries/americas/venezuela/1683.html

The above IS 2 years old, but I haven't heard Kerry update his position on Chavez.
It is very possible that Kerry was Against Chavez before he was For Chavez.



The Democratic Party is a BIG TENT, but there is NO ROOM for those
who advance the agenda of THE RICH (Corporate Owners) at the EXPENSE of LABOR and the POOR.

[MisterP]

67. not to mention Dems falling over themselves to protect Dear Leader

from a Chavez gibe a few months ago

[happydreams]

62. Nice find Judi. It looks like Rosales was linked to Cisneros Crime Family....

through Brownfield. This means Venevision (the Cisneros Crime family station) was in all probability linked to Rosales. Sure would be nice to get some hard data on that.

....That's how a cynic might see the Times' April 28 profile of Venezuelan billionaire Gustavo Cisneros. The story included lots of info about Cisneros's business holdings and political connections, but only a passing reference to the fact that he is suspected of having masterminded the failed coup against Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez. As Newsweek, The Miami Herald, and the St. Petersburg Times had already reported, Cisneros is accused not only of bankrolling the coup, but also of promoting it on his TV network Venevisión, and then censoring TV news on the day the coup fell apart....


http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0218,cotts,34381,6.htm...

...The only thing I found strange and extremely disturbing was a news report on Venevision which talked about a meeting between Ricardo Cisneros (from the Cisneros Group, the largest media group in Latin America and owners of Venevision) and William Brownfield, US ambassador to Venezuela. This meeting happened at Venevision headquarters in Caracas on December 15, 2004 in the company of the president of Venevision....

Brownfield stated that he is very happy with the way Venevision operates and their professionalism … and that the US government fully supports Venevision....


http://upload.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard...

[Judi Lynn]

73. Here's a working link on that DU quote, happydreams. Yours didn't work, for some reason.

http://upload.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2217335&mesg_id=2217352

Great thread. I'm glad you mentioned it! Some of these things are excellent to read again!

[citizen snips]

80. good article

Chavez's anger and rhetoric is justified.

[MISSDem]

63. And we should be happy because.....

Reading this makes me feel just a tad edgy. He looks like another Castro to me.

[humbled_opinion]

66. Get real. Don't believe the government hype on Hugo.

He is a peace loving family man that has the good of his country at heart. He speaks his mind, that is not a crime. He is not a friend of Bush but then not many are. If we had a good Progressive President that understood the real needs of the American people and the international community then we would see excellent coordination between Venezuela and the U.S.

[roody]

68. Cubans love Castro.

[LynnTheDem]

83. Cubans love Canada & Canadians, too.

Cuba is also a top tourist destination for Britain.

So WTF is your point?

[otherlander]

92. So he has the majority on his side. That doesn't make him right.

Maybe most of them do like him, but what about those who don't? How many protesters have been able to march undisturbed through the streets? The opposition is not tolerated. And if people are not free to speak their minds, then the revolution has failed.

[bemildred]

69. They are actually quite different.

One hardly knows where to begin. I mean, they are on good terms, and there are certain similarities, but politically and personally they are quite different. Cuba and Venezuela are very different too.

[goodhue]

79. Another Castro?!

How many free and fair landslide elections did Castro win? Chavez is racking them up.

Chavez is a beacon for democracy! And for socialism, which outside the USA, is not a dirty word.

[otherlander]

91. I wouldn't call him that.

Venezuela is a democracy, after all, not a dictatorship. And he isn't a Communist, he's a Socialist. But I agree that his government has a problem with corruption and hiring people based on political views rather than merit. I'm not a fan, but he seems like the lesser of two evils.

[antiimperialist]

72. Didn't Bush want to bomb Al-jazeera?

Those who claim authoritarianism because one station was kicked out need to think about their own president's actions against the international media.

[Judi Lynn]

74. I think an article said it was Tony Blair who finally talked him out of bombing them. n/t

[EFerrari]

87. Didn't Bush bomb al Jazeera twice?

Welcome to our double standard.

[Judi Lynn]

88. You're right! I looked it up. Once in Kabul, in 2001,once in Baghdad, in 2003, killing a journalist.

He has amassed a notable record for himself, bumping off journalists, or, in the case of Ms. Sgrena, killing the man sitting in the car next to her who dived across her at the last moment to protect her.

The story I was thinking of came out on the 22nd of November, and involved _Bush wanting to bomb Al-Jazeera in Qatar and other places, and Blair's finally talking him out of it.

What a colossal a-hole.

[otherlander]

93. The two are not mutually exclusive.

[vincent_vega_lives]

96. Chavez says he'll seek end to presidential term limits

http://www.spokesmanreview.com/tools/story_pf.asp?ID=162619

Chris Kraul
Los Angeles Times
December 3, 2006

CARACAS, Venezuela – The United States had better get used to its Latin American nemesis, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. If, as expected, he wins re-election to a new six-year term today, he says he will seek a change in the constitution that would enable him to serve indefinitely.

[vincent_vega_lives]

97. Venezuela activates Fighter Air Group with Russian warplanes

http://www.eluniversal.com/2006/11/03/en_pol_art_03A799815.shtml

Caracas, Friday November 03 , 2006
At least two of the 24 Sukhoi-30 warplanes President Hugo Chávez' Government purchased from Russia will be in Venezuela at the end of November or early December this year, the Venezuelan ruler announced.

Such fighters are to fly over the Venezuelan territory for the first time next December 10, the date when the National Armed Force (FAN) both is commemorating the Aviation Day and is launching "a rocket as part of the projects the Center for Airspace Investigation and Development (Cidae) is advancing," the FAN said in a press release.

The 24 Russian fighters Venezuelan purchased in July 2005 are to reactivate the Fighter Air Group 13, which became inoperative at the end of the eighties, when its 22 Canberra airplanes were removed from service, said former Aviation commander Brigadier General Maximiliano Hernández

[Judi Lynn]

98. Baltimore mother receives discounted Venezuelan heating oil

Baltimore mother receives discounted Venezuelan heating oil
By ALEX DOMINGUEZ, The Associated Press
Dec 6, 2006 1:15 PM (3 hrs ago)

BALTIMORE - A 58-year-old disabled mother is the latest beneficiary of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez' oil largesse.

Citgo Petroleum Corp., the U.S. subsidiary of Venezuela's state-owned oil company, delivered discounted heating oil on Wednesday to Debra Henderson's Baltimore home, the first of 15,000 needy households in Maryland slated to receive more than 3 million gallons of discounted fuel.

Citgo is providing up to 200 gallons to each household at 40 percent discount.

The heating oil program is part of a promise by the country's socialist leader to aid America's poor. Along with poor homes, Citgo is also donating free oil to homeless shelters.

Nationally, Citgo said it will expand the program beyond the Northeast to provide oil at a 40 percent discount to more than 400,000 households in 16 states. It will more than double the amount of oil provided, from nearly 40 million gallons last winter to more than 100 million gallons for this winter.
(snip/...)

http://www.examiner.com/a-440085~Baltimore_mother_receives_discounted_Venezuelan_heating_oil.html

[vincent_vega_lives]

99. one leader - one party - one ideology

In the next 14 years, Mr Chavez wants to turn Venezuela from a capitalist into a socialist society.

Most predict that Venezuela's private economy will disappear as we know it.

Orlando Ochoa, a leading economist, forecasts that the free market economy will be replaced by a socialist model where the state will have much greater control over the private sector.

"The state will regulate prices and profits in the private sector," Mr Ochoa said.

"Remember that President Chavez was re-elected by a wide margin. So that gives him the popular mandate and legitimacy to make big changes."

However, any changes to Venezuela's constitution must first be approved with a two-thirds majority in parliament, and then in a nationwide referendum.

But this should not pose too much of a problem for Venezuela's left-wing leader as parliament is entirely run by his loyalists and a large segment of the population is on record as supporting him.

"Private health care and private education will be first in line to be scrapped by the government as part of its drive towards socialism," said Mr Garrido.

"The whole country will be geared towards the motto: one leader - one party - one ideology," he added.



Next Central American socialist experiment coming up.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6212430.stm

[Tight_rope]

100. True Democracy at work here. Viva Chavez!