As any frequent reader of The Phalanx can attest, Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez is a popular topic of discussion, for the simple fact that Chavez is a model for leftist strategy in America. Chavez is a typical demagogue who plays on the fears of the weak minded, who champions himself as a hero to the down trodden, who blames others for the woes of his countrymen, and makes outlandish claims and promises in order to curry favor with his target audience. In so doing, Chavez, in typical Mussolini fashion, distracts his compatriots from the reality of his growing dictatorship. Indeed, no politician alive today is more adept at pulling a Mussolini, than Hugo Chavez. As Chavez has castigated the US as the enemy of freedom, Chavez has clamped down on the media and any political opposition to his rule. He has oppressed religious and charity organizations that refuse to spew the party line and has solidified his hold on power.

Chavez’s strategy has made him the darling of the American left and a model to emulate for leftists around the world. After all, his strategy seems to pan. With each passing day Chavez grows in power and influence. His political supporters now hold 100% of the seats in the Venezuelan legislature, ensuring his ability to rule without any democratic checks on his power. Indeed, using his weekly television and radio show, seen by millions on state television, Chavez is able to expand is base through an expert wielding of political propaganda, rivaled only by Joseph Goebbles in his prime.

To ensure that the Chavez era doesn’t end any time soon, the Latin American Mussolini has begun to float the idea of constitutional change that will allow him to remain in power indefinitely, the tell tale sign of a true dictator. Chavez, who is up for re-election later this year, has no real opposition. Opposition parties in Venezuela, such as they are, have been fractured and demoralized and are in no position to challenge Chavez, whose allies control the media, the military, the police and the “independent” election oversight authority, thereby ensuring the long term continuance of the Chavez “presidency.” According to Chavez, he is entertaining the notion of a national plebiscite calling for a constitutional change that would allow him to run again in 2012. There is little doubt what the results of such a referendum would be.

Chavez went on to taunt the US and Secretary of State Rice in particular, who call Chavez an obstacle to democracy in Latin America. According to Chavez, America is the aggressor, a popular tag line for the Mussolini of the South.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4731742.stm