DNC: Siding with Chavez instead of Columbia?

The story says it all. The largest steel maker in Venezuela wouldn't sell to the government, so they took it... adding to their collection of communications, electricity and oil. Chavez is making sure all the basic commodies of necessity are under his control

CARACAS, Venezuela -- President Hugo Chavez on Wednesday ordered the expropriation of Venezuela's largest steel maker after attempts by the government to acquire a majority stake in the company failed.

Venezuela's government will turn Siderurgica del Orinoco, which was controlled by Luxembourg-based Ternium SA., into "a socialist company," Chavez told workers gathered at a Caracas theater.

Sidor, as the company is known, "has now recuperated by the revolutionary government," Chavez said.

Since winning re-election in 2006 on promises to steer his country toward socialism, Chavez has made nationalizing major industries a top priority.

His government last year seized majority control of the country's largest telecommunications and electricity companies, and of joint oil ventures run by some of the world's largest oil companies. Earlier this month, he announced plans to nationalize cement companies including Mexico's Cemex SAB, France's Lafarge SA and Switzerland's Holcim Ltd.

snip... continue reading at link above

Now that you've been reminded about the downward spiral of Venezuela under Chavez... I told you that story, to tell you this story from FrontPage Mag by Mark W. Hendrickson. Columbia is in deep shit. Their forces crossed into Ecuador to kill leftist Paul Reyes and other FARC forces hiding out there. This is, of course, the group bent on taking the Columbia government by force. This action sends Ecuador’s president, Rafael Correa, into a rhetoric frenzy.

A more serious condemnation came from Hugo Chavez. And now he's posturing troops on the Columbia border.

Even more outrageous than Correa’s conduct was the reaction of Venezuela’s mercurial leader, Hugo Chavez. Chavez eulogized the murderous Reyes as “a good revolutionary,” ordered 9,000 Venezuelan soldiers to his country’s border with Colombia, and made it plain that he would give FARC safe refuge from Colombian justice as long as he was in power. Chavez’ actions are clearly those of a man rushing to the defense of an ally. Those actions lend credence to the report that the confiscated computers document hundreds of millions of dollars of aid from Chavez to FARC.

You might think that other Latin American countries—seeing that Chavez is trying to undermine Colombia’s government—would protest Chavez’ meddling, if not actually stand by Colombia’s side. Not so. The less radical Latin American presidents aren’t blind. They know how Chavez helped to organize disturbances in Bolivia and Ecuador that drove presidents from office so they could be replaced by Chavez allies. They know how much oil wealth Chavez is willing to spend to support left-wing allies and topple democrats throughout Latin America. This, I believe, intimidated them, and they joined Chavez in denouncing Colombia’s act of self-defense—an act which in no way hurt any other country.

So what do Chavez's not so subtle attempts to effect regime change from democracy to socialism in Columbia mean to the new breeds of US isolationist/protectionists?

Well, America was just about the last of Columbia's allies. And Pelosi has just forced the US Congress to join in on the "beat up on Columbia" free-for-all when she pulled the stunt of changing the rules about voting on CAFTA. under pressure from the AFL-CIO union honchos.

So here it is. A US ally is taking care of itself, attacking their rebel elements. They're not asking the US to send troops and do it for them, mind you. And yet what do we do? Start playing games with their economics for politics.

Hendrickson has an interesting take in his last paragraph... one that points out a looming contrast between union leaders of the past, and the leaders today.

This episode is highly instructive. It shows how completely Big Labor controls the Democratic Party. It also illustrates just how leftwing some labor leaders are. Earlier generations of American labor leaders would patriotically support our country’s allies. Sweeney, by contrast, is joining his fellow leftists from Latin America in beating up on Colombia. While democracy is under siege in our hemisphere, powerful forces in Washington are making common cause with democracy’s enemies. Shame.

I'd fall short of saying the unions are Chavez supporters. Afterall, socialism is not exactly a compatible critter with unions. But it is certainly ironic that US unions, exercising their power and influence over the Speaker and Congress, somehow find themselves on the same side as the Venezuelan despot and his subordinate neighboring thugs instead of our ally. And ya know, that's getting to be quite common nowadays... Hamas supporting Obama, DNC policies run parallel to al Qaeda's. This is quite the trend of late.

This is the Hillary/Obama party in control. Obama believes Bush as turned his back on Latin American countries. But the truth seems to sully his words as slick, politically motivated lies.

Just how are the DNC candidates to reconcile their party's behavior and policies with various national security issues? i.e... their constant cries the US must improve our image tarnished by the evil Bush. And we do this by abandoning Columbia economically, followed rapidly Iraq?? That should do mounds to increase "da love".

Perhaps what nags at me the most is why... just why... purposely or not... American leftists' vision for the US results in siding with our enemies instead of our allies darn near every time?

Venezula socialism... for some, anyway

It appears that some of Chavez's allies are gun ho for the Chavez socialist agenda... as long as it isn't applied to them.

Justice Minister Pedro Carreno became the subject of widespread criticism and ridicule by local media this week, when a journalist asked if it wasn't contradictory to attack capitalism while sporting a $180 Louis Vuitton tie and $500 Gucci shoes.

Apparently caught off guard, Carreno stammered unintelligibly for a few seconds before responding: "It's not contradictory because I would like Venezuela to produce all this, that way I could purchase things produced here instead of 95 percent of what we consume being imported."

snip

Information Minister Willian Lara often wears Tommy Hilfiger jackets, although they are red - the color of Chavez's ruling party. And Luis Acosta, the pro-Chavez governor of Carabobo state, argued last year that authorities can purchase expensive cars without sacrificing their revolutionary ideals.

"Is it that we revolutionaries don't have the right to have a Hummer or a car? If we make money, we can do it," Acosta said.

What a hoot....

Hugo Chávez tried to overturn the results of Venezuela's recent vote but was rebuffed by the military

Attempted Theft: Hugo Chávez tried to overturn the results of Venezuela's recent vote but was rebuffed by the military.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/74230
By Jorge Castañeda | Newsweek Web Exclusive
Dec 7, 2007 | Updated: 4:23 p.m. ET Dec 7, 2007

Most of Latin America's leaders breathed a sigh of relief earlier this week, after Venezuelan voters rejected President Hugo Chávez's constitutional amendment referendum. In private they were undoubtedly relieved that Chávez lost, and in public they expressed delight that he accepted defeat and did not steal the election. But by midweek enough information had emerged to conclude that Chávez did, in fact, try to overturn the results. As reported in El Nacional, and confirmed to me by an intelligence source, the Venezuelan military high command virtually threatened him with a coup d'état if he insisted on doing so. Finally, after a late-night phone call from Raúl Isaías Baduel, a budding opposition leader and former Chávez comrade in arms, the president conceded—but with one condition: he demanded his margin of defeat be reduced to a bare minimum in official tallies, so he could save face and appear as a magnanimous democrat in the eyes of the world. So after this purportedly narrow loss Chávez did not even request a recount, and nearly every Latin American colleague of Chávez's congratulated him for his "democratic" behavior. Why did these leaders not speak out? Surely they knew of Chávez's machinations, and with the exception of Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega, Ecuador's Rafael Correa, Bolivia's Evo Morales and, to a large extent, the Argentine Kirchner duo, none of the region's heads of state sympathizes with the Venezuelan revolutionary.

The reason for the silence: these leaders know Chávez can count on a fifth column in nearly every country in the region.

And this last point, is key, in my humble opinion.

Chavez Ignores Defeat by Voters Hit by 21% Inflation, Shortages

Chavez Ignores Defeat by Voters Hit by 21% Inflation, Shortages
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a6m70ULqKwJk&refer=worldwide
By Guillermo Parra-Bernal and Helen Murphy, Bloomberg, December 8, 2007

During the campaign, Chavez, 53, said he needed the 69 proposed changes to the constitution to further his socialist revolution, transfer some national and state powers to citizens and redistribute more oil wealth through a planned nationalization of the natural-gas industry. He also sought to abolish presidential term limits.

While victory in the referendum would have given Chavez power to carry out his plans in one swoop, his supporters, led by the president of the national assembly, Cilia Flores, are urging him to move ahead in steps, using his executive authority.

Labor Minister Jose Ramon Rivero asked Chavez to create a pension fund for workers who lack social security coverage, El Universal newspaper reported Dec. 4. Pro-Chavez industry group Empresarios por Venezuela urged a reduction in working hours, president Alejandro Uzcategui said Dec. 4. The referendum called for a cut to six hours from eight.

`Any Tool'

``If history is a guide, Chavez will use any tool at hand to speed up his revolution,'' Benitez said.

The national assembly gave Chavez decree powers once before, in 2001, when he used the authority to impose 49 laws, including a land-reform measure that allowed the government to seize farms and residences a government panel deemed underutilized.

End of article really says it all:

Chavez hammered home in his Dec. 5 news conference at the presidential palace.

``For those who are boasting that our revolution stumbled across, let me tell them that today, the revolution is stronger than ever,'' Chavez said. ``The revolution is here to stay and we will continue to fight.''