“Hugo Chavez” on The Daily Caller

At a time when most nations are trying to figure out how to stop Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad from killing his own people in a year-long struggle to stay in power, the Venezuelan government is helping to prop him up. (more)

During his 13-year reign as Venezuela’s head of state, Hugo Chavez has expanded Venezuela’s ties with rogue states, protected terrorist organizations and actively undermined the rule of law throughout the Americas. Chavez is currently recovering from surgery in Cuba, but that isn’t stopping him from continuing to undermine critical U.S. interests. This week, news surfaced that Venezuela is preparing to send a tanker of much-needed diesel fuel — the third such shipment since November — to Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. The move is clearly designed to subvert international sanctions and replenish the Syrian government’s dwindling energy reserves. This comes at a time when the Assad regime is increasingly isolated on the world stage and has ramped up its violence against opposition forces. According to official reports, the nearly one-year-long struggle in Syria has already claimed over 7,500 lives. High-level United Nations officials say that members of the Assad regime are directly responsible for “gross human rights abuses,” and perhaps even crimes against humanity. (more)

Venezuelan presidential candidate Henrique Capriles on Monday called for “balanced elections” and criticized the use of government money and slanted coverage in state media as President Hugo Chavez seeks re-election. (more)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Outmatched time and again at the polls by President Hugo Chavez, Venezuelan’s opposition leaders are trying a new strategy to unseat the populist leader this year, holding the nation’s first presidential primary to choose the strongest challenger. (more)

CARACAS, Venezuela — President Barack Obama’s sharp criticisms of Venezuela’s human rights record and its ties to Iran are heightening tensions with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who on Monday responded by calling Obama a “clown” and telling him to mind his own business. (more)

While waiting to collect her mother’s luggage at LAX, actress Maria Conchita Alonso confronted vocal Hugo Chavez supporter Sean Penn, calling him “a communist asshole,” WMAL reports. (more)

In his Friday Washington Post column, Charles Krauthammer criticized the president for waging class warfare on the so-called “1 percent” and likened the brand of populism he offered in a speech last week to Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chávez, and not Teddy Roosevelt, which the backdrop of the Kansas speech suggested was who he was attempting to mimic. (more)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez says his government would be open to negotiating with Exxon Mobil Corp. in a dispute over the nationalization of an oil project in the country. (more)

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez headed to Cuba Saturday for an unknown period of time for chemotherapy after giving up some powers and saying doctors had found no malignant cells in his body after cancer surgery last month. (more)

Caracas, Venezuela — Something wasn’t quite right, Hugo Chavez recounted. And the Venezuelan president’s mentor, 84-year-old Fidel Castro, noticed straight away. (more)

While most American attention to Hezbollah has focused on the Middle East, the militant Islamic group with ties to Iran has been gaining a strong foothold in Latin America, experts said at a House hearing. (more)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — President Hugo Chavez received a hero’s welcome as he rallied thousands of supporters upon his return to Venezuela, vowing to beat cancer after undergoing surgery in Cuba. (more)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s government postponed next week’s summit of Latin American leaders Wednesday, citing President Hugo Chavez’s health as he recovers from surgery in Cuba. (more)

Hugo Chávez extended stay in a Cuban hospital is because he is in critical condition, according to a report in El Nuevo Herald. (more)

What would it mean for Venezuela and Cuba if Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez died or was too incapacitated to govern? (more)

BERLIN – The Iranian government is moving forward with the construction of rocket launch bases in Venezuela, the German daily Die Welt wrote in its Friday edition. (more)

CARACAS (Reuters) – Capitalism may be to blame for the lack of life on the planet Mars, Venezuela’s socialist President Hugo Chavez said on Tuesday. (more)

Hillary Clinton has announced that she will not serve a second term as President Obama’s secretary of state. Here are the top ten things Obama will look for in her replacement. (more)

CARACAS, Venezuela — President Hugo Chávez is known to have expressed little patience for imported leisure pursuits like golf or Scotch whisky tippling. Now he has reserved some ire for another practice that is beloved in Venezuela: breast augmentation surgery. (more)

While millions of Americans continue to struggle to find work, tighten their belts during tough economic times and fight to defend their right to keep the best health care system in the world from being taken over by the government, President Obama continues his pursuit of a disastrous foreign policy agenda. (more)