Okay, I call him a loony, but the reality is that he is filling a vacuum of neglect by the United States in the region and that makes him dangerous. Really, besides building a fence between the US and Mexico, ranting about Castro and tightening travel restrictions by relative between the US and Cuba and sending a bunch of military aid to Colombia to stop drugs (that works well, not) while doing nothing to help the people of the region economically, what has been the US involvement in Latin America since 911? Anybody help me out here? Hello, have I forgotten anything?
Well, at least there are some student leaders in Venezuela who are up to opposing the would-be dictator, who is hell-bent on amending the constitution to allow for his continual reelection. An article in the New York Times paints a picture of a few dedicated kids sleeping every night in a different location attempting to stir opposition to Chavez while fearing for their lives. At least Chavez's ex-wife, Marisabel Rodriguez, is speaking out against the changes her former spouse is attempting to have imposed on his Nation. According to Brazils' Jornal de Tarde the former first lady is taking advantage of her husband's behavior over the weekend in a regional conference in Chile to draw attention to Chavez's negative side. When commenting on the tiff between the Venezuelan President and the King of Spain, she expanded her comments to the liberties her people would be forfeiting if and probably when they approve the changes to their constitution.
If you missed all the excitement in Chile, let me fill you in. Not widely reported in the US press, there was quite a furor in Santiago this weekend when the King of Spain stepped in to support his country's President, Rodriguez Zapatero, who was being continually interrupted by Mr. Chavez, who called the former Spanish president, Jose Maria Aznar, a fascist and then accused the Spanish government of being complicit with the United States in effecting the coup against Chavez in 2002--an accusation denied by Spain. Reports in newspapers across South America, report that the King asked Chavez, "Why don't you just shut up?". La Nacional in Chile reports that Chavez says he did not hear the remark and for that the King was very lucky.
According to El Correo in Peru, chancellor Alejandro Foxley speaking on behalf of the Chilean government, who hosted the Regional Conference where all this excitement went down, said that their government, headed by President Bachelet, had a "higher level" alliance with Spain than with Venezuela, thanks to a series of economic agreements signed between the two governments, but that Chile did have a "good relationship" with Venezuela.
It is in Chile's best interest to hedge its bets, as Chavez, loony, dictatorial or not, has growing regional influence in the region. In today's edition Peru's El Correo also reported on Chavez's stops in Bolivia's Beni District to check up on progress being made on the construction of various large-scale projects including a 28 mile long dike by Venezuelan engineers and military personnel.
Meanwhile, Fidel Castro has weighed in on the latest breath of life that Chavez has granted to the 2002 coup. El Espectador, of Colombia reports that Castro deemed the "debate" between his Venezuelan protege and the King of Spain historic. He also adverted that an attempt could be made on Chavez' life.
Also in El Espectador is an extensive interview with Democratic hopeful Bill Richardson, current Governor of New Mexico, former UN ambassador and Energy Secretary and, according to the Colombian daily, the most likely Vice Presidential pick of any of the other candidates for the US Democratic Presidential Nomination. The paper's interest in Richardson, included the facts that he is Hispanic, speaks Spanish and is interested in Latin America. In his interview, which shows his breadth of knowledge of the region and its concerns, Richardson underscores the utter lack of attention and insight that the Bush Administration has shown Latin America in the aftermath of 911. When we have shown interest in the region--for example through support of the opposition during the short lived Venezuelan coup or in strengthening unpopular sanctions against remittances to Cuban family members or by funding ineffectual military operations against Colombian cocaine producers, which produce unpleasant environmental consequences without significantly curtailing cocaine supplies, the US government only serves to stoke the image of a man like Chavez.
While I feel that Senator Biden would be a better choice for President of the United States, and while I feel that in order for Richardson to be tapped for a major roll in a Biden administration, the governor would have to embrace or at least find a way to support Biden's Iraq plan, I hope someone in Biden's campaign--I hope someone in every US presidential campaign, translates this interview and takes it to heart. We are facing major hot spots in the Middle East. We cannot afford another one to boil over in our hemisphere.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Joe Biden--help him break through--Go Joe!
Well folks, Joe Biden broke another fundraising goal--he was going for $500,000 by the 16th and I just checked in on the official campaign site (www.joebiden.com) and they've raked in a bit more than that as of today, the 13th, but with the Iowa Caucus, New Hampshire primary and other important contests coming so close to the holidays, advertising is going to be going for top dollars. And, Joe needs to break through to a national audience. On Thursday evening, the 15th of November, there will be another Democratic Debate, this one out of Las Vegas, Nevada, a state who this year will be holding an early caucus--that's right caucus. According to The News Hour on PBS, the Democratic party has been working hard to educate its folks about the process and to register and energize new voters--especially Latinos, so this state will have a different flavor to it than that of Iowa or New Hampshire. Biden supporters can only hope that he will get a little more air time this go round to introduce himself to this audience and to the Nation.
If you haven't checked Biden out yet, I urge you to do so. If you go to www.joebiden.com, you can access a slew of videos. If you don't have a lot of time to spend sorting them all out for yourself, I recommend the following clips: "Biden on This Week" (3 weeks ago, 19:41 minutes), "Sacred Obligation" (1 day ago, 8:18 minutes), "The Situation in Pakistan" (5 days ago, 6:52 minutes), "Joe Biden on Pakistan" (on Face the Nation, 1 week ago, 13:52 minutes).
We need this man. We really do. As he says himself on This Week he offers both "authenticity and insight". If there ever was a time in American when we needed these two traits in a leader, it is now. On Facebook, there was a guy who asked flat out, why should I support Biden. This is what I posted:
In 1988 he was a candidate for the Democratic nomination, and he admits that at the time, he was not ready. At the time he lost focus on his presidential campaign to head the Bork hearings, as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary committee, a committee on which had served since entering the Senate just before the Watergate hearings. He knew those hearings were incredibly important to the balance of the Supreme Court and thus to the nation. With his eye off the ball, he used a line he had often used and cited on the campaign trail during a debate. This one time, he forgot to cite the British politician who originally authored the line and was accused of plagiarism.This stuck to him. Additionally, throughout the campaign he had been experiencing excruciating head aches, which he ignored as stress induced. Shortly after the campaign ended, he suffered a severe brain hemorrhage, which almost killed him. It took many long months to recover from this event. But he did.
Senator Biden went on to sponsor crime legislation, which helped to bring down the violent crime rate in many U.S. cities, he sponsored and eventually passed the Violence Against Women Act. He became the chairman of the Senate Foreign relations committee where he has served with great distinction. He was one of the chief arccitechs of the plan that brought peace to the Balkans, and which has sustained peace in that region since the end of the Bosnian War. He also authored an amendment outlining a plan to bring a political end to the Iraq War. This plan was passed by the Senate and supported by other Democrat Presidential hopefuls. He is extremely well versed in Middle Eastern affairs and spoke to both Mussharof and Bhutro in the aftermath of the suspension on the Pakistani Constitution before they spoke to President Bush.
Check him out. Contribute to his campaign. Tell your friends and neighbors. Go Joe!
If you haven't checked Biden out yet, I urge you to do so. If you go to www.joebiden.com, you can access a slew of videos. If you don't have a lot of time to spend sorting them all out for yourself, I recommend the following clips: "Biden on This Week" (3 weeks ago, 19:41 minutes), "Sacred Obligation" (1 day ago, 8:18 minutes), "The Situation in Pakistan" (5 days ago, 6:52 minutes), "Joe Biden on Pakistan" (on Face the Nation, 1 week ago, 13:52 minutes).
We need this man. We really do. As he says himself on This Week he offers both "authenticity and insight". If there ever was a time in American when we needed these two traits in a leader, it is now. On Facebook, there was a guy who asked flat out, why should I support Biden. This is what I posted:
Because he has an incredible record in the Senate that stretches back over three decades, because he helped bring about peace in the Balkans, because his crime bill helped bring down violent crime in American cities, because he introduced the Violence Against Women Act, because he is a practicing Catholic, but doesn't think he needs to foist his beliefs on the entire nation, because he has raised incredibly well-balanced kids, because he doesn't lie to us, because he has a plan for Iraq that could actually work, because the worst thing he has ever been guilty of is sticking his foot in his mouth a couple of times--because he is more preoccupied with his work, our country and the truth than with the polls--because he has a sense of urgency and a sense of humor. Is that enough?
For those of you who do not know this man's personal story, he was elected to the U.S. Senate at the age of 29. Before he was sworn in at the age of 30, his wife and baby daughter were killed in a car crash. His two young son's were injured. He took his oath of office by one of his son's hospital beds. In order to bring stability to his family, he has commuted back and forth to Deleware on Amtrak trains from his Washington office since he was first elected more than 30 years ago. Eventually, he remarried, and with his wife raised his boys and a daughter who was a product of this second marriage. One son, is the Attorney General of Deleware and an officer in the Deleware National Guard. He is slated to go to Iraq. His other son, is a lawyer who ran a homeless shelter in Washington, DC after his graduation from Georgetown. His daughter is a social worker. His wife worked as a school teacher.In 1988 he was a candidate for the Democratic nomination, and he admits that at the time, he was not ready. At the time he lost focus on his presidential campaign to head the Bork hearings, as Chairman of the Senate Judiciary committee, a committee on which had served since entering the Senate just before the Watergate hearings. He knew those hearings were incredibly important to the balance of the Supreme Court and thus to the nation. With his eye off the ball, he used a line he had often used and cited on the campaign trail during a debate. This one time, he forgot to cite the British politician who originally authored the line and was accused of plagiarism.This stuck to him. Additionally, throughout the campaign he had been experiencing excruciating head aches, which he ignored as stress induced. Shortly after the campaign ended, he suffered a severe brain hemorrhage, which almost killed him. It took many long months to recover from this event. But he did.
Senator Biden went on to sponsor crime legislation, which helped to bring down the violent crime rate in many U.S. cities, he sponsored and eventually passed the Violence Against Women Act. He became the chairman of the Senate Foreign relations committee where he has served with great distinction. He was one of the chief arccitechs of the plan that brought peace to the Balkans, and which has sustained peace in that region since the end of the Bosnian War. He also authored an amendment outlining a plan to bring a political end to the Iraq War. This plan was passed by the Senate and supported by other Democrat Presidential hopefuls. He is extremely well versed in Middle Eastern affairs and spoke to both Mussharof and Bhutro in the aftermath of the suspension on the Pakistani Constitution before they spoke to President Bush.
Check him out. Contribute to his campaign. Tell your friends and neighbors. Go Joe!
Saturday, November 03, 2007
Latin America Round Up and Chavez Watch
Real quick, because there is not enough time in the day, here are some highlights of what has been going on in Latin America over the last couple of weeks--or at least some of what has been going on. My source on all this is the New York Times, but when I finally get a chance, I'll try to track down some regional sources for their slant.
- Okay, first of all, Argentina has just elected a female president, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, a powerful senator and also the current first lady. She actually won a senate seat before her husband, Nestor Kirchner got into politics, so she is the real deal. We do however have to watch what deal the Argentines are being sold. As the Argentine Constitution allows presidents to run again after they take four years off, are we looking at an endless rotation of Kirchners? (A note for trivia buffs--Argentina did have a female president in the past, but she was not elected. Juan Peron's second wife, Isabela (not the famous Evita) succeeded her husband after his death in office.) Mrs. Kirchner joins Michelle Bachelet, President of Chile, and Portia Simpson-Miller, Prime Minister of Jamaica, as a leader of Latin American nations.
- Former Shining Path rebels now working with narco-trafficers in Peru killed a police chief last week.
- Bolivia's busiest airport was taken over by locals in the province of Santa Cruz, whose leaders want autonomy from Evo Morales' socialist government. The federal government no longer controls it. Since a number of airlines have canceled flights due to demands for cash. Sounds messing. Stay tuned. I need time to investigate this one.
- Wacky, scary Chavez is at it again. Besides trying to adjust the nation's clocks by 30 minutes to increase metabolism, the Venezuela leader is starting his own regional Development Bank meant to diminish the influence of the World Bank, which is under the leadership of the United States. We need to keep our eyes on this one, because big, regional players like Brazil have signed off on the proposal.
- Even more frightening, our favorite Latin American demagogue, Mr. Chavez, has had his puppet government approve amendments to the Constitution, which would allow him to be re-elected indefinitely.. Now the voters will have the final say, but we need to watch that major violence does not erupt as the campaign gets underway nor do we want voter-fraud. Is the fix already in?
Joe Biden on Rudy Guiliani: "There's only three things he mentions in a sentence...
...a noun and a verb and 9/11."
These now-famous words were uttered by my man, Joe Biden, during this week's Democratic Debate on MSNBC, just after he called New York's former mayor "genuinely not qualified to be President." And for those of you not following the on-going saga, Rudy Guiliani's machine has been fighting back in a way that belies--fear. And definitely more fear than one would think from someone counted out of the nomination.
Why? Because despite the fact that in the entire two hour debate Biden, a man who sat on the Senate Judiciary Committee for the Watergate Hearings, a man who has stood up to International War Criminals, a man who sponsored the Violence Against Women Act, a man who led the charge to put more cops on the beat in Rudy's New York and other major cities across the nation, a man who helped broker and guarantee peace in the Balkans, a man who has chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a man whose plan to bring a political solution to Iraq passed the Senate and which is vocally supported by the other Senators running for President--was given only 6 minutes to speak--spoke well and truthfully.
While his one-liner got all the headlines, and hopefully these headlines will bring people to take a closer look at Joe, he answered another question, one that Mr. Russert asked in a way to 'trap' the Senator, so brilliantly, that I'm going to ask you to take a look:
These now-famous words were uttered by my man, Joe Biden, during this week's Democratic Debate on MSNBC, just after he called New York's former mayor "genuinely not qualified to be President." And for those of you not following the on-going saga, Rudy Guiliani's machine has been fighting back in a way that belies--fear. And definitely more fear than one would think from someone counted out of the nomination.
Why? Because despite the fact that in the entire two hour debate Biden, a man who sat on the Senate Judiciary Committee for the Watergate Hearings, a man who has stood up to International War Criminals, a man who sponsored the Violence Against Women Act, a man who led the charge to put more cops on the beat in Rudy's New York and other major cities across the nation, a man who helped broker and guarantee peace in the Balkans, a man who has chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a man whose plan to bring a political solution to Iraq passed the Senate and which is vocally supported by the other Senators running for President--was given only 6 minutes to speak--spoke well and truthfully.
While his one-liner got all the headlines, and hopefully these headlines will bring people to take a closer look at Joe, he answered another question, one that Mr. Russert asked in a way to 'trap' the Senator, so brilliantly, that I'm going to ask you to take a look:
MR. RUSSERT: Senator Biden, would you pledge to the American people that
Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards each wiggled his or her way out of the question, essentially pledging to do what they could to prevent
SEN. BIDEN: I would pledge to keep us safe. If you told me, Tim -- and this is not -- this is complicated stuff. We talk about this in isolation. The fact of the matter is the Iranians may get 2.6 kilograms of highly enriched uranium; the Pakistanis have hundreds, thousands of kilograms of highly enriched uranium.
If by attacking
Presidents make wise decisions informed not by a vacuum in which they operate, by the situation they find themselves in the world. I will do all in my power to stop
What is the greatest threat to the
Tomorrow, Sunday, November 4th, 2007, Joe Biden will appear on Face The Nation. If don't catch the first broadcast, you'll be able to get it online later. In the meantime, think about this--today Pakistan's Musharraf suspended the Constitution and replaced the head of the Supreme Court of his nation. Do you follow?
Go Joe!
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