Chavez sworn in for radical new term in Venezuela

[frigidmagi]

Yahoo

CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was sworn in on Wednesday for a new six-year term that he vowed to use to press a radical socialist revolution including nationalizations that have roiled financial markets.

Emboldened by his landslide re-election win, the typically combative anti-U.S. leader has gone on the attack, deciding to strip a private opposition TV channel of its license and take over some major companies owned by foreign investors.

"Fatherland, socialism or death -- I take the oath," Chavez said.

The man who calls Cuban President
Fidel Castro his mentor changed tradition by draping the presidential sash from his left shoulder instead of his right in what he says is a symbol of his socialist credentials.

Legislators at the ceremony in Congress chanted "Long live socialism."

Investors took fright this week at the leftist drive that further consolidates power in the hands of a former coup leader who already controls Congress, the courts and says he has total support in the army and the giant state oil company.

As the United States criticized Chavez's moves against private property, the stock market lost almost a fifth of its value on Tuesday, debt prices tumbled to a six-week low and the currency changed hands at nearly twice the official rate

Still, buoyed by strong oil revenues and high popularity, Chavez is expected to ride out any economic and political storm.

In his political career, the former army officer has survived jail, a coup and a recall referendum.

A leading anti-U.S. voice in the world and in the vanguard of a shift to the left in Latin America, Chavez now wants to scrap presidential term limits and lead the OPEC nation for decades.

Chavez, who rode to Congress for the swearing-in ceremony in an open-top car waving at crowds of supporters, has said his new term's plans include stripping the central bank of its autonomy and taking on special legislative powers.

The opposition has accused Chavez, in power since 1999, of seeking to transform the fourth-biggest oil exporter to the United States into a Cuban-style centralized economy.

BLANK CHECK FROM VOTERS?

Chavez, who won 63 percent of the vote in December, has amplified comparisons with Castro by creating a single party to steer his revolution, but insists he will always tolerate opposition.

By now focusing on the media and utilities in his new term, he is homing in on two sectors that could complete his state control.

"Chavez interprets the election result as giving him a blank check to develop a program that runs against the interests of Venezuela and only serves to benefit himself," Omar Barboza, a leading opposition official, told Reuters.

Chavez insists he needs more power to save Venezuela from exploitation and even attack by capitalist countries, particularly the United States, whose President George W. Bush he has labeled "the devil."

Chavez's nationalization plans remain hazy and the utilities and foreign investors want to know whether he plans to take a 51-percent governing stake or seize all of their enterprises.

Chavez has already confiscated large cattle ranches. But his decision to nationalize the country's biggest telecommunications company CANTV and power firms represents a bold new policy.

Still, investors have generally stayed in Venezuela while Chavez has been in office because the country has high revenue as one of the world's top exporters.

Investment bank Morgan Stanley said in a research note, "We continue to see oil prices as ultimately the key driver" of investments.

One wonders what Chavez will do in 2 years when robbed of his devil...

[Comrade Tortoise]

5 bucks says he rigged the election...

[Cynical Cat]

5 bucks says he rigged the election...

He might have, but he doesn't need to. He's immensely popular with Venezuela's poor (which is to say a huge chunk of the population) as he's one of the few governments that actually makes them a priority. That's how he keeps on getting relected as he goes deeper and deeper into the crazy pool. That's what makes this so fucking tragic, he's going to go Castro and fuck his country up and screw the poor while doing so.

[Mayabird]

Do you think we (the U.S., and other countries) will be getting people asking for political asylum from Venezuela soon?

Also, the president of Bolivia is also trying to pull a Venezuela and is trying to get in league with Chavez and Cuba. The mess is spreading.

[Mayabird]

It gets worse.

Rule by decree passed for Chavez

President Chavez has vowed to deepen his "Bolivarian revolution"
Venezuela's National Assembly has given initial approval to a bill granting President Hugo Chavez the power to rule by decree for 18 months.

Mr Chavez said he wants to approve "revolutionary laws" to enact sweeping political, economic and social changes.

He has said he wants to nationalise key sectors of the economy and scrap limits on the terms a president can serve.

Mr Chavez began his third term in office last week after a landslide election victory in December.

The bill allowing him to enact laws by decree is expected to win final approval easily in the assembly next week on its second reading.

'Bolivarian revolution'

Venezuela's political opposition has no representation in the National Assembly since it boycotted elections in 2005.

Mr Chavez has said he wants to see major Venezuelan power and telecoms companies come under state control.

He also called for an end to foreign ownership of lucrative crude oil refineries in the Orinoco region.

Critics of Mr Chavez say he is trying to build a totalitarian dictatorship with all institutional powers consolidated into his own hands.

National Assembly President Cilia Flores said "there will always be opponents, and especially when they know that these laws will deepen the revolution".

Mr Chavez has said he wants to deepen his "Bolivarian revolution", named after the 19th Century Latin American independence fighter.

[frigidmagi]

You know while everyone was scared of Jr and his imperial mannerisms... Chavi has done a much better job of taking a democracy and turning it into a personal feifdom. I wonder if he and Putin get togather for drinks or something...

[Mayabird]

You know while everyone was scared of Jr and his imperial mannerisms... Chavi has done a much better job of taking a democracy and turning it into a personal feifdom. I wonder if he and Putin get togather for drinks or something...

I doubt it. Chavez has a very strong cult of personality. The poor masses (and there are a lot of poor people in the masses) love him. The middle class, the press, in fact, pretty much everybody else hates him but can't do much about it as they're increasingly marginalized. There was a coup attempt against Chavez in 2002 that collapsed after two days and since then he's been steadily consolidating power.

[frigidmagi]

Putin has a good number of followers as well I would point out.

[Mayabird]

Putin has a good number of followers as well I would point out.

A good number, but I didn't think he has the level of popular support that Chavez has.

[Scottish Ninja]

I'd thought Putin is quite popular in Russia, especially due to the economic growth that's come under his administration. At least that's what I'd gotten from the BBC, though admittedly I was mostly looking for articles supporting that.

Is there any data on Putin and Chavez's relative approval ratings?

[frigidmagi]

Ninja I gotta ask, what makes you think you could trust their offical approval ratings? Chavez is shutting down every media outlet that doesn't toe his line, while Putin posions his critics with nuclear salt products.

Doesn't sound like freedom of information types to me honestly.

[Josh]

Putin is a strong leader, and as far Russia is concerned, they're surrounded by enemies. People tend to forgive governmental abuses when they feel emperiled, as we well know.

As for Chavez, is anybody other than starry-eyed idealist with Che shirts surprised?

(Hell, most of them probably think it's swell that he's setting himself up as president-for-life.)

"Fatherland, socialism or death -- I take the oath," Chavez said.

That's fertile historical context you're diggin' into there, Chavi.