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Monday, December 4, 2006

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Name that mutual interest!!!

The AP reports that State Department press officer Eric Watnik has a wry sense of humor when it comes to Venezuela:

The State Department, long at odds with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, greeted the populist leader's landslide re-election victory by holding out the possibility of a more cooperative relationship with his government.

"We look forward to having the opportunity to work with the Venezuelan government on issues of mutual interest," State Department press officer Eric Watnik said Monday.

Chavez, meanwhile, saw his victory as a setback for the United States. "It's another defeat for the devil, who tries to dominate the world," Chavez told the crowd of supporters in Caracas. "Down with imperialism. We need a new world."

Watnik's brief comments did not offer congratulations to Chavez nor did it make direct reference to him or what it regards as the increasingly authoritarian course he is pursuing....

On Friday, two days before the election, National Director of Intelligence John Negroponte outlined U.S. concerns about Chavez in a wide-ranging speech at Harvard University.

He said Chavez's "meddling in the domestic affairs of other states in the region — granting Colombia's FARC insurgents safe haven and other material support, for example — already has made him a divisive force."

He criticized Venezuela's attitude toward drug trafficking as "permissive," an allegation Venezuelan officials have denied.

Venezuela's growing ties to Iran and other states, such as North Korea, Syria, and Belarus, "clearly demonstrate a desire to build an anti-U.S. coalition that extends well beyond Latin America," Negroponte said. (emphasis added)

Readers are strongly encouraged to name issues in which Hugo Chavez and George W. Bush would share a mutual interest.

posted by Dan on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM

Comments:

Oil? Venezuela is still exporting, correct?

posted by: CCW on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

Damn. I was going to say oil.

posted by: Adrian on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

Simple answers to simple questions

Q--"Readers are strongly encouraged to name issues in which Hugo Chavez and George W. Bush would share a mutual interest"

A--"meddling in the domestic affairs of other states"

posted by: anonymous on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

Baseball. Chavez is a fan and so is Bush.

As a matter of fact, if Chávez were really interested in encouraging integration with the other Andean nations and Mercosur, he would drop Yanqui baseball like the proverbial hot potato and go heel bent to develop a great futbol team in Venezuela. The Vinhotintos are the only team from CONMEBOL (the conference for the Ibero-American South American countries) that have never qualified for the World Cup.

I would also other abother issue is buffoonery.

posted by: Randy Paul on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

In theory, the State department advocates the interests of the United States, not gwb in particular. But even in your more limited formulation, I think both parties (and their respective countries) would find the pacification of Colombia desirable.

National, if not personal, interest aside, both would probably support higher oil prices, an American invasion of Iran,a decline in the influence of OAS and MERCOSUR,the demise of the ICC,and the implentation of the "unitary executive." That last one might not count.

posted by: foolishmortal on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

Some ideas:

1) Preventing the spread of AIDS
2) Deflecting incoming asteroids
3) Preventing reform of electronic voting machines
4) Defending against invading spacecraft
5) Ensuring that the spice (oil) flows
6) Increases in domestic pork spending
7) Promoting the next World Baseball Classic
8) Chatting up religious leaders to support the government
9) Banking in Zurich

posted by: Catfish N. Cod on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

We have a common interest in avoiding replacing Chavez with someone worse, like a drug dealer on CIA pay.

We have a common interest to keep Venezuela as a country going and hungry for petrodollars.

We have a common interest in avoiding civil war + total chaos in Venezuela and its possible invasion by those Dutch colonialists from Aruba.

We also agree that the Carribbean should be free from pirate galleons.

posted by: jaimito on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

Each has a mutual interest in seeing the other IN POWER but ineffective.

posted by: Nicholas Weaver on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

Demagoguery?

posted by: Eapen on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

I'm going to have to say "clearing brush," because I'm not aware that W. has any other hobbies.

posted by: alkali on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

I hear he also likes drinking Johnnie Walker Blue...

posted by: Eapen on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

Abolition of term limits.

posted by: Jack on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

Oil? Baseball, really-- look at their roster for the WBC (http://ww2.worldbaseballclassic.com/2006/rosters/index.jsp?sid=t944 because i'm not smart enough to put an html tag into blog comments)
pitching alone-- santana, the zambrano's, miggy cabrera, abreau, mags, v-mart, its a fantasy baseball all star team.

Really, it should have been a cake-walk for the chavez-istas through the WBC. How could they have blown it? I was sure they would be greeted as liberators!

posted by: peter on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]

Getting the Bush daughters out of Argentina?

posted by: ptm on 12.04.06 at 02:08 PM [permalink]