Bush's Lonely Campaign Against Venezuela's President Chavez

[Itsthetruth]

CounterPunch
June 20, 2005

Time for the US to Accept the Results of Venezuela's Democratic Election
Bush's Lonely Campaign Against Chavez
By MARK WEISBROT

The most recent embarrassment came at the Organization of American States meeting in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., this month, when the United States failed to convince other countries that the OAS should monitor and evaluate "democracy" within member countries. It was widely seen as an attempt to use the OAS against Venezuela, to which other countries responded by saying, "Please take your fight elsewhere."

Just weeks before that, the US-backed candidate for OAS president lost to Chilean Interior Minister Jose Miguel Insulza, backed by Venezuela, Argentina and Brazil. It was the first time in 60 years that the United States failed to get its candidate as head of the regional body. The Bush team pressured Insulza to make a statement about "elected governments that do not govern democratically," which was seen as a swipe against Venezuela. But this turned out to be more of an embarrassment to Insulza than anything else.

After supporting a failed military coup in 2002, giving millions of dollars to the opposition (including some involved in the coup), funding a presidential recall effort that failed miserably last year -- one would think that the Bush team would know when to give up. But they don't.

And now an increasing number of US members of Congress, both Republicans and Democrats, are beginning to question the wisdom of continually harassing our second-largest trading partner in South America and third-largest oil supplier.

http://www.counterpunch.org/weisbrot06212005.html

[SteppingRazor]

1. Why would we accept these Democratic but pseudo-socialist results?

Did Reagan relent to a socialist government in Nicaragua? Or Grenada? Hell no!
Bush will do the same. Even if it means, say, selling arms to the Middle East and using the money to fund Venezuelan rebels.

[getmeouttahere]

2. Fortunately, Latin America....

sees through the BushCo hypocricy...all BushCo cares about is unfettered capitalism, not democracy

Let's keep shining the light on BushCo's dirty deeds...

www.handsoffvenezuela.org

[Double T]

3. Psychopaths never quit!

[denverbill]

4. It would be nice if a few prominent Democrats stepped up.

Kerry really pissed me off when he pretty much regurgitated Shrub's views on Venezuala during the election. I haven't heard Democrat outside of DU voice support for Chavez, but IMO, he's doing a helluva a lot more good there than the right-wing ever did, and I have yet to see any convincing proof that he's remotely dictatorial.