Chavez becomes an issue of the US presidential campaign
President Hugo Chavez denied on Friday that Venezuela was a threat to anyone, after US presidential hopeful Mitt Romney criticized Barack Obama for playing down the risk posed by the socialist leader.
Obama told a Spanish-language television station in an interview screened this week that Chavez's actions over recent years had not had a serious national security impact on the United States.
Romney said Obama's comments were “stunning and shocking” and showed a pattern of weakness in the Democratic president's foreign policy.
In an interview with a local Venezuelan television station on Friday, Chavez dismissed the allegations he posed any danger. “The Venezuela of today is no threat to anyone,” he said.
Whenever there were efforts to improve relations between Washington and Caracas, Chavez added, they were criticized by powerful “snipers” who issued threats in the US media.
Chavez also cited his friendship with Juan Manuel Santos, the conservative leader of neighbouring Colombia.
“The president of Colombia has said it, twice: Chavez is a factor of stability for the region.”
Obama's campaign team has accused Romney, the likely Republican nominee in the Nov. 6 election, of playing into Chavez's hands by giving him the international attention that he wanted.
Chavez frequently lauds Fidel Castro's family led regime in Cuba, and Romney's comments could cheer Cuban-American voters in Florida, where many oppose Castro and Chavez.
There was a window to improve ties between Caracas and Washington after Obama took office in 2009 and promised more engagement with foes. Chavez toned down his tirades against the “Yankee Empire” and shook hands with Obama at a summit.
But within months, Chavez said the US leader was disillusioning the world by following his predecessor George W. Bush's foreign policies, and he cranked up his rhetoric again.
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If the USA expect the UK to support them in various troublespots around the world, it should be made crystal clear that if the USA give the impression of supporting Argentina that results in Argentine aggression, any multi-national force involving the UK will immediately lose the troops, ships and aircraft required for the South Atlantic.
In that circumstance, the UK can tell the yanks to get Argentina to send military forces to replace the lost UK forces (needed to defend the Falklands/destroy the Argentine threat) if the USA decide to back Argentina.
What could be fairer than that?
we have mr camaron.
and that alone tell the world, its own story .
www.voicescarryblog.com/chavez-gives-anti-family-planning-book-to-obama
Want to know a secret about the U.S.A.? It does not have to satisfy the world, just Americans, so Fuck off to the rest of YOUR world and disappointment. And for everyone else.....the Republicans choose poorly and Romney has a snowballs chance in hell of getting elected. So it becomes another election of the lesser of two evils for Americans. We tend to say that the devil you know is better then the one you don't. The American public does not give a rats ass about the rest of the world anymore and is concerned with their own jobs and welfare. At some point the assholes that run my country will realize that.
We are polarized as long as Republicans put up religious freaks and Democrats put up bleeding heart liberals.
And it's a far out thought to think that the USA will support Argentina ever. Nothing is ever what it seems.....except in S.A.
If you think I control my contries foreign policy, you're a bigger idiot than you frequently display. That being said.......Give back the Twin Towers, the 2,752 targeted innocent people from 28 countries of which 21% were born in another country, maybe than we will.
Do you really think your meaningless dribble is worth anything? Go to South America sometime, in particular Argentina, motherland of your sacred Christine......talk to the Portenas and Portenos and see what they think of her...........nothing.
And back on point, you stated that we disappointed the world........again, we do not operate to satisfy the world.......only Americans and every attempt to our allies.
What is a porteno/portena btw, do you mean rich people?
You'll get no sense out of BK - he is either pathologically obsessed (and I mean with cut out pictures and headlines all over the walls.....) with CFK, or just out to wind people up.
BK claims to be a scot, but if he is, he is a very isolated and atypical example of our friends from way up north!
Well said about 9/11, BTW. I am a Brit, from the west midlands, but a Woman from New York worked with me in 2001 -2004.
The day after 9/11 I told her that what I had seen as the 2 towers collapsed was the most disgusting act of mass murder imaginable, and that I hoped the perpertrators would be either killed or captured.
A lot of my countrymen who go on about Afghanistan have very selective memories and think that those who follow Jihad will leave us alone - they won't. I support the servicemen of both our countries in their endeavours to keep us safe.
A lot of folks like to blame your country for all the worlds ills, it's a convenient way of forgetting their own shortcomings. I personally have liked all the yanks I met, and think that like us the average US citizen is just trying yo get on with his/her life and is'nt bent on some crazed crusade to conquer the world....
I have to admit though, if I was American, I would not know who to vote for. The last election I thought Obama would make a better president than than Republican gang, but I have to say I don't think Obama and co have'nt much of a clue about dealing with important allies, or hostile nations.
Have you decided who to vote for? or is the jury “still out”?
Out of curiosty , if you could have a dream candidate - who would it be? there must be somebody you could think of who would make a good POTUS.
It's really tough. I will admit I voted Obama to break that black barrier, but not sure. Realitically he was not given a chance......the Hpuse (Rep controlled ) shot down everything he tried. If Romney get in, the Dems control the senate and it's the same thing. Problem in politics here, no one cares about the country and it's all about party. Obama's problem is the watch he was handed, we made many enemies during the Bush years, even ones that where our friends. I always thought whomewre became President this past term was a one termer. But Romney will not get it. He was my Governor in Massachusetts and he was liberal then. We all realized he was a one stop man with the Whitehouse as a goal.
I was born in NYC and watched those towers rise month after month as a kid, never thougtht I would see them fall. People do not seem to understand that those extreme Islamists will not stop until all the world are muslims. Or when they call us killers they do not get that we do not intentionally target civilians to kill as tragic as it is. And NATO country soldiers do not hide in Mosques knowing we will not attack it.......cowards if you ask me.
I always like Gen. Colin Powell or Scwhartzkorpf, but they were real leaders and in politics, no one can be lead anywhere.
I think you hit the nail on the head about our enemies - we will be fighting them for many years. I share your disgust at their methods, too.
I have to admit I liked Colin Powell. He sort of reminded me of James Earl Jones. I would use the words “presidential and composed” to describe the way he always looked when interviewed.
Your complaints about “party over country” are echoed over on this side of the pond. A lot of us are sick to death with mediocre professional politicos, born to priviliege, with no clue about the real world. There have even been some news items about the country becoming destabilised as a result of disenfranchisment.
Sounds like both our democracies need a bit of an overhaul -I think that noone should run for our parliament unless they have worked in a different capacity for at least 10 years - want to be secretary of state for education? - have you worked in a school?.....want to be defence minister? - what branch of the armed forces have you worked in?...
Lets face it, in any other post they would want to know what kind of experience you had.
Hands across the sea, mate.
Anyway on the US, you don't have to be unsympathetic to the victims of the barbarian bin Laden to oppose western intervention in Afghnaistan, just to remember that he was originally part of a previous western intervention there, against the Russians, giving them their own Vietnam, thats how al Qaeda and the Taliban were created. And just like the Russians and Victoria Britain we just can't beat the Afghans so the only real question is how many more on both sides have to die before we admit we've lost and negotiate a way out (which would of course include al-Qaeda not coming back; the Taliban apparently don't get on with them as well as most people think according to the latest information, and their tiny now in any case).
I do agree about the logjam of party politics though. Thats why I like the left leaders of Latin America, because they do seem to rise above it by taking up the cause of the people
We defeated the Afghans in the 1870s (2nd afghan war) and the best the afghans can claim for 1919 (3rd afghan war) is a stalemate.
The ISB (Pakistans intelligence agency) played a far greater role in the taliban than we did - thats why they have their own problems with it now.
The only way to fight the likes of Bin Laden is to find them and kill them.
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