Behind the Scenes with Presidents Obama and Chavez

It's quite simple Hugo Chavez has some hints of communism however if America can barrow money from China, then we can deal with Venezeula. Hugo Chavez wants to seen as the leader and respected.

"The GOP" didn't determine which soundbites or video clips would be shown on American television! You people blaming the right for what was shown on tv sound ridiculous.

And regarding Darfur: Criticism, criticism, criticism about "unilateral" decisions about Iraq (even though it was quite a multi-nation activity). And then when Bush says: "ok, then for Darfur we're going to go through the UN" and then the UN does nothing... you blame him for not acting unilaterally! Ridiculous.

Most Americans have long since recognized the GOP's desire to use a soundbyte rather discuss issues.

Other than the dead enders that comprise the Republican hard core nutjob base, most Americans recognize the GOP one sentence hypocrisies and realize how far the GOP has fallen.

Jake, you can't report this!

This undermines the right-wing's latest meme du jour that Obama is "weak" and is "undermining" U.S. security!

right wingers please finish college or at least high school you can not just rely on the bible (99percent of it is false) China is one of the worst communist human violating countries in the world and we speak to them if you rigt winger hate chavez so much stop importing his oil

We just barely made it through Bush's 8 years of "grip and grin" and good 'ole boy nickname diplomacy without slipping into WWIII. Is it possible that 2 people can actually have a brief conversation without smiling and not hate each other? I think so, if they're grown-ups. The thing I love about Obama is that he is serious without being uptight. We haven't seen that in a politician for too long.

We just barely made it through Bush's 8 years of "grip and grin" and good 'ole boy nickname diplomacy without slipping into WWIII. Is it possible that 2 people can actually have a brief conversation without smiling and not hate each other? I think so, if they're grown-ups. The thing I love about Obama is that he is serious without being uptight. We haven't seen that in a politician for too long.

alan macdonald---incredible post, insightful and moral.

The people who accuse us on the Right of hating Obama because he's black, or inflicting hate upon him like they did Bush, have it so wrong. I want so much to be able to support the man. I want to be able to cheer for him (when did you ever hear that from the left the last eight years?)! He's my President, for crying out loud. When I saw this video, due to the language factor, I focused on the body language. It appeared that Obama was giving Chavez the (in politico-speak of course) smackdown the man deserved. If that's the case, then Bravo, President Obama!

For heavens sake we buy 1.07 million barrels of oil per day from Venezuela and no amount of threats or military fire power would make them buy our goods in return, but cordial relationships with that country means we increase our trade and get some of our oil dollars back for our American economy. Thats what is called American interest

Chavez is ready to sell our oil and trade with China.

Obamas prime duty apart from defending this country is to forge American interests of economic expansion. His charm offensive is a great secret weapon. Go BO

madawaskan---if you think so little of genocide that you think sending some money and and airlifting some horribly underarmed african soldiers is the answer then i don't inhabit the same moral universe as you. i respect what president bush did. but we are talking about genocide. and it is the obligation of every nation that has signed the UN charter to do contribute militarily. do you think our anything BUT combat troops can stop the genocide. it's nice there are some australian troops (non-combat) and some african "peace-keeping troops", again a euphamism for non-combat troops. the government of sudan would collapse if combat troops hit its shores! the road to hell is paved with good intentions. there was a UN peace-keeping "force" in kigali for god's sake. read dallaire's "shake hands with the devil." the world should be ashamed of Rwanda---it wasn't until 800,000 tutsis were hacked to death with machetes that the genocide even made the cover of Time!

i am not going to make excuses for the clinton administration with respect to Rwanda. when he visited there in 1994 on the anniversary of the genocide he could not even apologize.

the point i am making is that there is inaction in the face of genocide and you seem want to make excuses for Bush's inaction and attack clinton. clinton's excuse of Somalia and tha Balkans is as inexcusable as Bush's "we hare 'otherwise engaged'".

is the US willing to let another genocide happen on its watch? yes. that is sad. that is the true hippocracy of this nation that touts "human rights" everywhere but protects them nowhere. US troops need to be in Sudan not Iraq and Afghanistan. because there is nothing worse than genocide.

political bickering over responsibility is childish and irresponsible. until US troops enter sudan to end this genocide we are complicit in its commission. and that does not sit well with me.

whether Bush or Clinton, republican or democrat, we must act against genocide---not in words or easy deeds of throwing money around or flying in unarmed african troops---we must act militarily, decisively. it would take nothing for the US Army to end the genocide in Sudan and topple Bashir and send him to the Hague. the sudanese army is nowhere near as strong as the taliban. there is no genocide in afghanistan.

you keep trying to politicize inaction---well Bush had a war and clinton did nothing---all of that is pathetically irrelevant. we have a genocide being committed as we type and all you want to do is say Clinton did nothing in Rwanda???!!! OK he did nothing. so what's our excuse for not intervening in the Sudan? please don't say we have other committtments or this or that president "tried" or we have more "pressing committments". the Nuba (black african) people of Darfur will cease to exist within 18 months. they will be totally annihilated.

i'm sick of the blame game and president a did more than president b, because in the end 0x0=0. nobody stoppped the genocide in Rwanda but the RPF fighters. and no one will stop the Darfur genocide at all.

so either man up and say the US should commit ground troops (combat troops) to end the genocide or i just consider you insincere. either you wrote about Darfur and Rwanda because you are concerned about genocide and annihilation of you are just making cheap political points and excuses. which is it?

This is so nowhere. Have you wingnuts here never seen the photo of George Bush kissing the same little Saudi guy on the lips ? or walking with him holding hands? Lets get real, this is all you got. No ideas, only lame complaints.

Where, oh where, do guys like Chavez, Morales, and Ortega 'get off' with painting the US as a militarist, 'corporate-financial Empire' that tortures powerless people in its oil territories, and economically oppresses its own 'working class' citizens?

Oh, that's right, they 'get off' with it because they see it directly and know the truth ---- of which the American people are blinded by the 'Vichy' facade of democracy that this ruling-elite global 'corporate financial Empire' hides behind (with the help of an equally 'Vichy' corporate media) while the guileful EMPIRE hides in our kitchen of faux democracy and mis-uses the US super-power military to abuse the rest of the world!

There may be some method to Obama's madness in allowing others to inform the American people about the global corporate empire in which we really live.

My bet? That not only all the other Western Hemisphere states will deliver this message today, but that all the European and other real, sustainable, and functioning 'social democracy' (post-WWII, and post-Empire) nations of Europe and Japan will start telling America this "inconvenient truth" ---- which will make Obama's job as the reforming leader of our country more possible in bringing America from EMPIRE back to the democratic Republic that 99% of Americans thought we were and want to be again.

Paul Wall-

What are you coming up with ?

Bush sent money, had our allies the Australians send forward ground controllers-"troops" in and had US. air crews and US C-130s airlift the African Union troops into Darfur.

All while the US troops were engaged in two separate theaters.

Clinton did what in Rwanda again?

He and his Secretary of State Albright would not even allow the term genocide to be used.

But somehow Bush is more guilty of not doing anything because HE -Bush did not send US Army ground troops-just US Air Force and enabled the African Union to get on scene.

And pray tell where are you reading that I am attacking Obama on Darfur?

Mike C---read all of my posts and get what i say straight before you attack me. i'm on your side, man. don't shoot!

Mike C---i know the history of darfur very well. i know very well that it began and continued under bush's watch. i am a democrat who voted for obama, proudly, and still support him.

madawaskan---i realize that genocide is a political issue for you to attack president obama, so my interest in dialog with you is gone.

if you were serious about the tragedy that is genocide you would be advocating action, military action in Darfur. you just want to rip apart Obama and Clinton.

very unsincere.

genocide is THE worst crime. that the US allows it to happen diminishes us all---republicans, democrats and independents.

quit pretending one president is better than another with regard to genocide. at least clinton intervened in the balkans where a genocide was occuring.

at the end of the day it's "only Darfur" so who cares? your concern is cheaply political, not that the annihilation of africans in the sudan is at hand.

Paul Wall, The genocide in Darfur started and has been going during the course of the Bush Administration. And he did nothing.

Don't throw rocks, especially in your own glass house.

Since when did the Conservatives become so insecure? You guys always need to be in a state of perpetual fear of somebody ALL the time. Why?

It's not a healthy way to live guys.

and "Democrats own the Executive, the House and the Senate." yeah but when Darfur was declared by president bush to be a genocide nothing was done. giving money doesn't end genocide, troops do. bush did nothing!