Chavez Says He's Ready for U.S. to Expel Venezuelan Ambassador, Break Ties

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Bloomberg

Chavez Says He's Ready for U.S. to Expel Venezuelan Ambassador, Break Ties
By Charlie Devereux - Dec 28, 2010 6:51 PM CT

President Hugo Chavez said he’s ready for the U.S. to expel Venezuela’s ambassador to the U.S. and break off diplomatic ties as part of a five-month feud over the Obama administration’s choice to be its top envoy to Caracas.

“If the U.S. government is going to expel our ambassador there, then do it. If the U.S. government is going to break off diplomatic relations - do it,” Chavez said in comments carried on state television. “It’s not my fault. It’s theirs for naming an ambassador who immediately goes to the press to rant against the country where he is going as ambassador.”

State Department spokesman Philip J. Crowley said Dec. 20 “there will be consequences” to Venezuela’s decision to protest President Barack Obama’s nomination of diplomat Larry Palmer as the next American ambassador to Caracas.

Chavez rejected Palmer’s nomination after the career diplomat and former U.S. Ambassador to Honduras told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in July that the Venezuelan army has low morale and that members of the government have “clear ties” with terrorist organizations in neighboring Colombia.



Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-29/chavez-says-he-s-ready-for-u-s-to-expel-venezuelan-ambassador-break-ties.html

[Violet_Crumble]

1. Looks like the US is confused over what the word 'diplomat' means...

It doesn't mean sit there and bitch and slag off the country yr going to be ambassador to. I would hope that if the Americans sent a wanker like that here and they had a history of slagging off Australia, my country would refuse to accept them. What's so hard about the US sending someone who is genuine in wanting a good relationship? Seriously, this US administration is behaving very childishly on a whole range of foreign policy issues...

[Judi Lynn]

3. You're so right. Brazil's President, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva says Latin America is disappointed

to have discovered our President has implemented the very SAME Latin American policy used by _{George W. Bush.}

Thank you for your comments concerning how this behavior would go over with your country.

[Violet_Crumble]

13. I think the Obama administration is little different when it comes to foreign policy..

..than Bushco was. There's a tendency to dress things up prettier, but it's the same old ugly business as usual attitude.

btw, I found this bit in the article that stood out: 'While warning that Venezuela’s refusal to welcome Palmer would hurt already-strained relations, the State Department did not say what steps the administration may take.'

Well, if the US knows the relationship is strained, sending an ambassador there who slags off the country he's going to and accuses them of having ties to terrorists (that's a bit of a people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones moment) is a move designed to really damage that already fragile relationship...

[molly77]

19. Violet-Crumble

The US has been itching to start trouble with Venuzuela for some time. They have oil and they are brown. That pretty much sums it up for our foreign policy.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

69. Obama kills brown people?

[timo]

87. sometimes

mostly with drones, he is making lots of friends in pakistan and other places in the middle east

[Bacchus39]

33. nope, completely false. Lula says he is disappointed, not Latin America

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101227/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_brazil_latam_us

[Judi Lynn]

50. You're misrepresenting, of course. Read for comprehension.

Wednesday, December 29th 2010 - 07:09 UTC

Brazil: Lula disappointed with Obama's LatAm policy
Relations between the United States and Latin America have not changed in any meaningful way under President Barack Obama, Brazilian head of state Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said.


~snip~
Lula, who leaves office Saturday after two four-year terms, said that despite his having several conversations with Obama about the need for “a change of vision” in Washington's relations with Latin America, he is not confident the message has been received.

“In the United States they should understand the importance of Latin America,” the Brazilian leader said, “a democratic region ... without nuclear bombs.”

With “more than 35 million Latin Americans living in the United States,” Lula said he finds it hard to understand why Washington continues to behave as an “empire” in its ties with the region.

“I hope Obama visits Brazil in 2011, but the important thing is that he visits not just this country, but all our countries, to know our reality,” the Brazilian president said.

Lula also repeated the criticism he offered last week of U.S. policy in the Middle East.

“There will be no accord in the Middle East while the United States believes it can build peace alone, because it is part of the conflict,” he said.

http://en.mercopress.com/2010/12/29/brazil-lula-disappointed-with-obama-s-latam-policy

[Bacchus39]

56. you said Lula said that Latin America was disappointed, that is completely inaccurate

Lula was representing his own opinion, he was not speaking for Latin America. see my post on the latinamerican barometer in the latin american forum. Obama is the most admired leader in the region. Lula is second. your heroes are last. Obama may be a disappointment to Lula, but in no way can it be inferred that Latin America is disappointed with Obama.

[Judi Lynn]

57. If Latin American leaders thouroughly disliked George W. Bush's policies,

and Lula da Silva CLEARLY says Obama has NOT CHANGED US POLICY, then anyone can see for himself what the score is.

There's no way you can spin your way out of it.

[Bacchus39]

60. did Lula poll Latin American leaders?? no, you simply made that up

why don't you do something productive like learn Spanish, it seems you have plenty of time on your hands.

[ronnie624]

64. His words clearly indicate a belief that latin Americans are disappointed.

He is obviously speaking for Latin Americans:

"In the United States they should understand the importance of Latin America"

"I hope Obama visits Brazil in 2011, but the important thing is that he visits not just this country, but all our countries, to know our reality"

Polls of Latin Americans reveal unequivocally their anger over U.S. intervention in their region of the world. Most believe (correctly, in my opinion) the U.S. was behind the attempted coup in Venezuela. With no perceivable change in the U.S. attitude under President Obama -- hundreds of billions for "full spectrum dominance", supporting and aiding illegal coups, and U.S. politicians and a media establishment that still unabashedly refers to Latin America as the "backyard" of the United States -- Latin Americans in general could not be anything but disappointed.

It isn't clear what you're grasping for, but grasping you are.

[Bacchus39]

68. poll show Obama most popular leader in the Americas

Chavez is second to last just ahead of Castro. Feel free to site those polls showing Latin America's anger to back up your claim.


survey is for all of latin america, evaluating other countries leaders.



Más arriba veíamos la opinión favorable de algunos líderes, entre ellos Barack Obama, que alcanza
73% de opinión favorable en el año 2010. Eso se traduce en un 6.3, en una escala de 1 a 10, en TOTAL AMÉRICA LATINA 2010.
Los líderes peor evaluados son Fidel Castro con un 3.8 (baja de 4 en el 2009 donde fue el penúltimo),
Hugo Chávez con un 3.9 (igual que el año pasado cuando fue el último) y Daniel Ortega con un 4.3
(Igual que el año pasado en la misma posición, el antepenúltimo).

http://www.latinobarometro.org /

[bitchkitty]

71. There is nothing about Chavez being unpopular at the link you posted.

Why would you pretend there was? Even though many here don't speak Spanish, Google translator is readily available.

There was, however, this interesting graph on democracy in Latin America. Venezuela is certainly not second from last there.

[Bacchus39]

72. Informe Anual 2010 click on Informes on the main page pages 121 and 122

there you go.

[bitchkitty]

73. Cherry pick much?

It is not the opinion of the majority of Venezuelans, who should really be the only ones who matter. Further down, it shows his lowest rankings come from countries that are friendly to the US. ¡Qué sorpresa!

http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/5856?quicktabs_2=3">US Foes are Among the More Democratic Regimes in Latin America, According to their People

On December 3 the Chilean polling firm Latinobarómetro released its annual public opinion poll of eighteen Latin American countries. The poll provides valuable clues about citizens’ views, and should be taken seriously in any assessment of Latin American political and social realities.

Here I provide a summary and analysis of some of the poll’s major findings, focusing on the results which seem most relevant to US policy (those who read Spanish can view the results in full on the website). As in past years, the poll offers a chance to test the degree to which US policy in fact promotes democracy, as politicians and pundits claim it does: are US allies like Colombia, Mexico, and Peru really the “thriving democracies” that the US government and press claim they are, in contrast to the creeping “dictatorships” in countries like Venezuela and Bolivia <1>? The Latinobarómetro poll, like other polls, is by no means a problem-free reflection of the level of democracy, justice, or well-being in the various countries—citizens’ perceptions can sometimes be wrong or misleading, of course. And like most polls, those citizens with established residences in centrally-located areas tend to be overrepresented, leading to underrepresentation of the urban and rural poor; this methodological bias surely hurts left-leaning regimes more than others <2>. But despite these limits, the poll results remain essential to any accurate assessment of Latin American realities.

The 2010 results are broadly consistent with those of 2008 and 2009: the countries frequently vilified as exemplars of authoritarianism do relatively well by their own citizens’ account, while those most closely aligned with the United States tend to fare more poorly by regional standards <3>. This pattern is most apparent upon examination of Venezuela and Bolivia, on the one hand, and Colombia, Mexico, and Peru, on the other.

[Bacchus39]

74. yes, people in those countries would like to have democracy

the question asked their opinion on democracy in the abstract.

my cherry picking was relevant to the discussion above whereas, one particular Chavista erroneously claimed that Latin America was disappointed with Obama. these poll results prove otherwise.

[bitchkitty]

75. Your cherry picking was an attempt to give credibility

to your assertions about Chavez.

[Bacchus39]

77. its right there in the poll, Latin America is not disappointed with Obama

Obama is the most admired leader. If Latin America is disappointed with Obama what then does that say about Chavez who is the second least admired . it is what it is. Lula may be disappointed with Obama but Latin America isn't. Lula didn't say that anyway as was falsely claimed.

[Judi Lynn]

81. Why Latin America is Disappointed with Barack Obama

Posted: January 7, 2010 05:21 PM
Why Latin America is Disappointed with Barack Obama

When Barack Obama was elected president, the people of Latin America, as with citizens across the globe, immediately sensed an opportunity for improved relations with the United States, less hostility and war, more engagement and peace, and ultimately, improved conditions in the region and the world. Although Obama was elected to represent the interests of the U.S., and not those of the Western Hemisphere, the air was filled with expectations, hopes and aspirations about a new chapter in relations between Washington and a region whose history is marred by U.S. interference, covert operations, and support for dictators.

The Summit of the Americas in April of 2009 provided Obama with an early opportunity to make clear his goals for a new policy. Obama awed the regions' leaders in attendance when he announced the U.S. would seek an "equal partnership," one without senior and junior partners, and launched a new chapter of "engagement based on mutual respect and common interests and shared values." He even shook hands with Venezuela's president Hugo Chavez and spoke publicly about the thousands of Cuban doctors serving in the region.

Just prior to the summit, President Obama ended restrictions on Cuban Americans' ability to travel and send remittances to Cuba. In June, the U.S. conceded to demands by the region for Cuba's readmission to the Organization of American States, ending a 47-year suspension from the organization. Soon after, Cuba and the U.S. announced the restoration of bilateral migration talks canceled in 2003. Obama's early Latin America policy consisted of cautious engagement with Cuba, reducing rhetoric toward adversaries, and supporting Mexico's fight against drug trafficking. Latin America's leaders, aware of Obama's ambitious domestic and global agenda, waited patiently for concrete signals of the new partnership he announced at the summit.

Unfortunately, Obama's "change you can believe in" soon began to look like "more of the same." On June 28th, Honduras' democratically elected president Manuel Zelaya was kidnapped at gunpoint and exiled to Costa Rica. President Obama and the State Department originally spoke out against the coup and called for Zelaya's restoration. However, the coup regime quickly hired powerful lobbyists and PR firms to lobby Congress and the executive and to influence mainstream media coverage, arguing the removal of Zelaya was constitutional. Republican Members of Congress applauded the coup, labeling it a victory against Chavez, and used brass-knuckled political tactics, such as stopping confirmation votes on Obama's Latin America nominees, to wield influence over the policy. The administration soon began to backtrack, refusing to officially label what happened in Honduras a coup, and remained silent about human rights violations. The rest of the region, still fresh with memories of coups and military-installed regimes, forcefully opposed the coup and refused to recognize the results of the November 2009 elections in Honduras for a new president. Yet, the U.S. quickly recognized the election results.

More:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sarah-stephens/why-latin-america-is-disa_b_415341.html

Don't drag this out. You're embarrassing yourself.

[Name removed]

82. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Vidar]

89. Fresh off the CIA presses, no doubt.

[Name removed]

70. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[molly77]

18. Violet -Crumble

hillary clinton has done that several times. Gone to a country and then put them down. She should retire. Get the clintons out of the obama administration. bill is going to campaign for rahm emmanuel in Chicago..rahm has no legal right to even run for mayor. Crooks.

Viva Chavez

[Judi Lynn]

2. How many countries would accept an ambassador who claimed his new host country

is involved with terrorist organizations?

He accused Venezuela of harboring FARC, the leftist guerrillas from Colombia, completely ignoring the fact that the same fighters have violated the borders of Ecuador, Brazil, Panama, and Peru.

US corporate media REFUSE to acknowledge that this has been a problem other countries have had, as well, preventing Colombia's guerrillas from crossing into their countries. By the way, Colombia had to apologize to Hugo Chavez in a multi-hour meeting after it was learned that Colombia's own head, Jorge Noguera, of its CIA/FBI spy organization was involved in a conspiracy to assassinate Hugo Chavez.

Upon a separate occasion, a tip led Venezuelan authorities to discover over 100 Colombian right-wing paramilitaries and former soldiers encamped at a ranch owned by a virulently anti-Chavez Cuban-Venezuelan, Miami-connected opposition leader, and proponent of "guarimba" (violent protest) Roberto Alonso, brother of US film actress, Maria Conchita Alonso.

They testified they had been hired by Venezuelan opposition members to break into a National Guard armory, steal enough guns to outfit 1,400 fighters, break into Miraflores Palace, and assassinate Hugo Chavez.

The murderous characters going into Venezuela seem to have mostly been the right-wingers, working for the right-wing Venezuelan opposition.

As I have stated, and it is commonly known, the leftist rebels also penetrate OTHER borders surrounding Colombia. They have never been given shelter by any of the other countries' Presidents. You may recall, Uribe, with the help of US forces at the airbase in Manta, Ecuador, dropped lots of bombs inside the Ecuadorian border and killed some rebels just less than a mile inside the country, without Ecuador's awareness until it was over, nearly kicking off a bona fide war with Ecuador.

Sending a loudmouth, aggressive, combative "diplomat" to Venezuela as its "ambassador" is one of the most obnoxious, disrespectful acts this country could manage, even though _{George W. Bush} did it, HIS ambassadors never insulted the host countries until they had already infested the host.

[boppers]

5. I'm sure the ambassador to Honduras knows that FARC is hard to contain.

Prior to joining the United States Foreign Service, Palmer served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Liberia, West Africa (1971-1973), as assistant director of financial aid at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville (1973-1974), as a professor of history at Cuttington College in Suakoko, Liberia (1974-1976), and at Wake Forest University in Winston Salem, North Carolina (1978-1981).
Palmer entered the Foreign Service in 1982. He served as vice consul in the Dominican Republic (1982-1984), and then as personnel officer in Montevideo, Uruguay, and Asuncion, Paraguay, from 1984 to 1986. He worked in the State Department as staff assistant to the Assistant Secretary for African Affairs from 1986-87 and then served as counselor for administration in Freetown, Sierra Leone from 1987 to 1989.<2>
In 1989, Palmer became a Pearson Fellow, serving as assistant to the president of the University of Texas at El Paso. His portfolio was advancing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), creating faculty and student exchange opportunities in universities throughout Mexico, and serving as university consultant for International Affairs. At the end of two years as a Pearson Fellow, Palmer left to serve as personnel officer in Seoul, South Korea, (1991-1994), and later served as counselor for administration in the Dominican Republic (1994-1998).<2>
From 1998-1999, he attended the Senior Seminar. He arrived in Quito, Ecuador to begin a tour as Deputy Chief of Mission in August 1999. He finished his tour in Quito as Chargé d'Affaires In July 2002.

Palmer was sworn in as United States Ambassador to Honduras on September 9, 2002, by Secretary of State Colin Powell and delivered his credentials to the Honduran President Ricardo Maduro on October 9, 2002.<3> On June 28th, 2010 President Obama nominated Palmer as United States Ambassador to Venezuela.<4>

----

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Leon_Palmer



This is Chavez making hay, nothing more.

[eridani]

10. Fucking over three countries by pushing NAFTA. Great credentials n/t

[boppers]

15. Depends on your goals. eom

[DeSwiss]

48. NAFTA?!?!

So he's a specialist in slave wages for all, eh?

- Well fuck NAFTA and the DLC horse it rode in on.......

K&R

[boppers]

51. Canada has slave wages?

When did that happen?

[eridani]

53. Canada, the US and Mexico have all had wage levels pushed down by NAFTA n/t

[DeSwiss]

55. didn't read where it said he was a dipolomat in Canada. Did you? n/t

[boppers]

58. Somebody brought up NAFTA, and slave wages.

Hence, Canada.

[DeSwiss]

63. NAFTA also goes south. Hence slave wages. n/t

[boppers]

66. "slave wages for all"

"all" seems to imply north, and south, which is why I was wondering about wages in Canada.

[Arctic Dave]

11. Is it just me or does this guy tend to get jobs in countries with a high degree of civil unrest.

Seems strange.

[molly77]

21. Clinton advisor Lannie Davis

helped in the overthrow of the elected president of Honduras. Now he is trying to keep an elected leader who was voted out in office in an African country....Gold Coast. Clinton's policies are the same as bush's . Get the clintons out of Obama's administration.Democracy Now ..can be seen online.There was a segment on this horrible episode of clinton world wide management yesterday. ..I think.

[mwooldri]

27. That's odd, Obama says Gbagbo should step down...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/2010/dec/08/ivory-coast-elections-obama-letter

Lanny Davis is not acting for the White House.

Plus Gold Coast was the pre-independence name for Ghana. For some reason after independence, Ivory Coast kept its French Empire name.

[ronnie624]

37. He isn't really a diplomat.

He's an operative for promoting the will of the political power establishment in Washington.

Very funny Latin American joke:

Why has there never been a coup d'état in the United States?

Because there are no U.S. embassies there.

[Judi Lynn]

38. That is a superior joke, too. It was Chile's recent President who introduced it.

She should be an expert, as someone whose entire family was imprisoned, tortured, her father, a loyal Chilean high-ranking military officer who condemned the U.S.-directed-coup dying during his torture-filled imprisonment.

[ronnie624]

62. I'm sure most who read these threads have already seen it,

but I can't help myself. I love it. Rarely does a joke capture irony so perfectly.

[burrowowl]

7. AMEN!

"Sending a loudmouth, aggressive, combative "diplomat" to Venezuela as its "ambassador" is one of the most obnoxious, disrespectful acts this country could manage, even though George W. Bush did it, HIS ambassadors never insulted the host countries until they had already infested the host."

[nyy1998]

4. Blah blah blah, it's a bunch of hot air on both sides

Nothing to see hear folks.

[ronnie624]

8. There is plenty to see. U.S. intervention in the Americas is a fascinating subject.

Venezuela doesn't have a history of covert political warfare in other countries. It doesn't overthrow other governments, and it has not expressed a desire for, and allotted hundreds of billions of dollars to, military dominance over all of the Americas. Claim of some sort of moral parity between the two governments is illogical.

[eridani]

14. You mean that Venezuela doesn't have an equivalent of SouthCom?

Really?

[sabrina 1]

9. Wrong, what we have seen, thanks to the Wikileaks revelations

is that everything Chavez has been saying about the U.S.'s policies towards Venezuela, was true.

Chavez should just withdraw Venezuela's ambassador. The U.S. tried to overthrow Chavez, a man elected by his own people. Most other leaders would have broken off ties with a country that committed such a crime against them.

Chavez is far too tolerant of this country's disgraceful and deceptive behavior.

The U.S. backed the coup in Honduras also.

In fact, all South American countries should recall their ambassadors until this country learns to behave like a civilized country.

[molly77]

22. sabrina 1

"In fact, all South American countries should recall their ambassadors..."

Good idea...

g bush kidnapped the elected leader of Haiti..Aristide. WE are the worst terrorists in the world. What if Haiti kidnapped our president?

[nyy1998]

43. "The U.S. tried to overthrow Chavez, a man elected by his own people."

THat was Bush, mind you. I haven't seen any new coup attempts by the USA(although I can't blame Obama if the thought crossed his mind).

And before you preach to me about how great the democratically-elected Chavez is, look at how he handled the fact that the opposition parties gained the majority of the vote. The 18-month decree power just for a flood? If it was 3-6 months I could understand, but he wants to be King Hugo whether the ppl of Venezuela wants it or not.

Another thing, we're Venezuela's biggest oil importer, while Chavez could look to the Chinese(and in fact, he has), he's smart enough to know that the US market is still lucrative enough not to lose it.

[whosinpower]

47. Don't be daft - really

Chavez will not lose any money for selling the oil to the chinese. He may lose his head...literally...but it has absolutely nothing to do with "how lucrative" the US market is.

The only - ONLY reason America, Obama, or whomever might want to overthrow Chavez has absolutely not one thing to do with how he treats the opposition parties. It would definately have ALLOT to do with what those very parties promised the americans.....trade deals, oil rights, etc, etc. That is how it works after all, isn't it? Company A wants to exploit a resource from nation B. Company A does not get the overwhelming gratitude from nation B's government.....Company A convinces Nation A to overthrow covertly Nation B's government - REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT they were democratically elected or not, regardless of how good or bad a leader they were, regardless of how progressive they might have been.

[nyy1998]

79. Thanks for providing evidence in refuting my case.

[Judi Lynn]

80. You're unaware he has had that authority many times ALREADY?

As for the opposition making gains in the National Assembly, how did you avoid knowing they WITHHELD all their candidates the last election, so they didn't have anyone to elect?

Running candidates in THIS election assured they'd get some elected. Simple to grasp. His party still has "formidable overall control" of the National Assembly.

Please invest your energy in learning something about the subject first.

The rest of us are deeply aware that the millions of US taxpayers' dollars being handed to Venezuelan opposition groups has steadily increased during Obama's term in office. He has NOT differed one degree from the filthy, underhanded, hostile policy set in place by _{George W. Bush.} How could you have avoided knowing about this?

[earcandle]

6. I wouldn't want him either, with those credentials. He is sure to stir up stuff.

[Tunkamerica]

12. Should've sent that as a cable. Then there's plausible deniability.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

16. Chavez to Obama: Tombstone me, Right Fucking Now

But I hope Obama doesn't tombstone Chavez' ambassador. Putting him on "Ignore" would work just as well. Don't let him sit at the Big Folks' Table at the diplomatic dinners.

:popcorn:

[Bacchus39]

20. yep, ignoring him is what Chavez hates the most. Obama will continue to do so

there will be no ambassador in Venezuela and its rather meaningless if there is.

[HankyDubs]

31. Political assassination

is what you're promoting. Now I know you're just talking tough shit about assassination behind a keyboard and I would just ignore dumbassed comments like this if the US hadn't already carried out so many political assassinations in south America.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

35. On DU, "tombstoning" is not actually fatal. And, welcome.

A tombstone is the avatar for someone who the moderators have deemed unworthy.

Welcome to DU.

:hi:

[Judi Lynn]

39. You're right. People with a social conscience can't support what has happened over and over.

Welcome to D.U., HankyDubs. :hi:

[EFerrari]

52. Those tables are getting less and less important

as Latin America bypasses its dick swinging neighbor to the north. It's sort of sad because it didn't have to turn out this way.

[madrchsod]

17. another war for OIL...second largest reserves in the world.

[social_critic]

24. There won't be war, this is being blown way out of proportion

The US embassy in Venezuela has functioned without an ambassador quite often in the past. The Venezuelans usually start the row, then the US asks Venezuela's ambassador to leave. Diplomatic relations aren't broken for this reason, nor do the two countries go to war.

Venezuela's oil production is fairly insignificant, even if its reserves are high. And Venezuela needs the US market a lot more than the US needs Venezuela's oil. Also, we should factor in that Venezuela does have huge reserves, but the bulk of these reserves are extremely heavy oil (more like tar than oil), and it can not be shipped nor refined like other oils. This means Venezuela would have to make huge investments to extract this oil, and the projects to do so are discussed on paper, but so far they are not moving forward due to lack of agreement between the Venezuelans and the foreign multinationals which have to put up the cash.

In conclusion, I think this thread is fairly off course, this type of friction has happened before, neither country did anything about it, just waited it out until things cooled off, and the oil trade between the two, when we focus on the actual figures, is fairly meaningless.

[robcon]

23. Chavez: the definition of a tin pot dictator.

n/t

[HankyDubs]

30. Except for the whole

Elected three times in free and fair elections (certified by the OAS). So...not really a dictator. Maybe you need to get a dictionary with some accurate definitions.

[HEyHEY]

65. He's still a cock.

[EFerrari]

76. Why are some of you guys so obsessed with the Chenis?

:)

[Judi Lynn]

78. That one was startling. Never heard anyone use that term for a person!

Takes all kinds!

http://imminentgood.com.nyud.net:8090/images/giant-rooster.jpg

[HEyHEY]

84. I just like calling people names

WHo doesn't?

[EFerrari]

86. Good point.

:)

[EFerrari]

40. Yes, because leaders who resist American hegemony are very very bad.

[HEyHEY]

85. Just because they are resisting hegemony doesn't mean they are good.

[COPE2]

25. bravo

i was wondering what chavez was doing in the first place. anyone with any integrity, and self respect ought not have ties with the u.s.
the u.s. is a rogue state, and the sooner people realise that, the sooner the human population will be liberated.

[Judi Lynn]

41. Its work in this hemisphere has mostly been revealed after declassified papers were opened.

So much destruction, abuse of human beings, entire countries the actual actions in Latin America have all been committed behind our backs, going back so far.

Welcome to DU, COPE2. :hi:

[onehandle]

26. Somebody's diapers need to be changed. nt

[Bacchus39]

28. indeed. prediction: the Senate will confirm Palmer in the next few weeks

and Chavez will need changing again.

[Pavulon]

29. Hugo Chavez is going to assassinate Julian Assange

for taking all his press and lulz from the hero worship crowd. If a fat man in a rad shirt pitches a fit and no press shows up, does it really matter?

[fascisthunter]

32. weirdo right wing americans need to be put in their place

it's time for us Americans to do that so other countries don't have to. This government is fucked up... I don't pay taxes to have this government go down to South America to install fascist despots when a country democratically elects someone who is left wing. Fucking arrogance and ignorance wrapped up in one ball of shit, called the American't right wing.

[L0oniX]

34. The consequences will be that we won't be getting any more oil from Venezuela .

Bah ...who needs it ...right?

[mwooldri]

36. Somehow I don't think US and Venezuela will cut diplomatic ties.

Sure there may be a vacancy in the US Embassy in Caracas but until Venezuela hits the US sanctions list then there will be relations of sorts, however strained they may be.

[Psephos]

42. Tempest in a teapot. Both countries are better off by maintaining regular diplomatic ties.

Which means they will.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

44. Of course they will maintain the diplomatic channels

Possibly not at the Ambassador level, if that is what the grand theater requires. But at some level, either directly or through intermediaries.

Unless Venezuela declares war on us, or we on them. I'm not sure we could sustain a war with Venezuela without pulling troops from Korea.

:hi:

[FLPanhandle]

45. Chavez, you aren't that important to this administration. No one cares about your ambassador.

The U.S. doesn't give a shit about your little spat.

[Name removed]

46. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[DeSwiss]

49. +1

:thumbsup:

[tammywammy]

54. Couldn't Chavez just bring his ambassador home then?

If he wants to break ties, he should do it, bring home his own ambassador. :shrug:

[boppers]

59. He was already kicked out, effectively.

His visa was revoked.

[PufPuf23]

61. Potus Obama and SOS Clinton are not honest brokers in Latin America

and have maintained prior policies, some illegal and against treaties.

IMO Latin American would rather be solid allies with the USA but our leaders and policies are the problem.

[social_critic]

67. What does solid ally mean?

I'm not sure it makes sense for a Latin American nation to be a solid ally of the USA if it means sending troops to back the imperial armies and fall in line behind the US in defense of unsavory regimes the US happens to support.

[Judi Lynn]

83. U.S. must change tack on S. America: Lula

U.S. must change tack on S. America: Lula
by Staff Writers
Brasilia, Brazil (UPI) Dec 29, 2010

Outgoing Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva says the United States needs to change its approaches to Latin America because its handling of the region under the Obama administration has been disappointing and inadequate.

Lula made the comments amid a brewing crisis over Venezuela's rejection of U.S. Ambassador-designate Larry Palmer. Lula didn't directly refer to the row between Caracas and Washington in comments reported by MercoPress and Spain's EFE news agency.

Relations between the United States and Latin America haven't changed in any meaningful way under U.S. President Barack Obama, said Lula during a breakfast meeting with journalists at the presidential palace in Brasilia.

~snip~
Lula repeated a criticism, often heard in Latin America, that he finds it hard to understand why Washington continues to behave as an "empire" in its dealings with the region.

More:
http://www.terradaily.com/reports/US_must_change_tack_on_S_America_Lula_999.html

[Name removed]

88. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Vidar]

90. This should be happening much more often, considering what a rogue nation we've become.