Two interesting issues in Venezuelan-U.S. relations of late.

The first, Chávez’s speech at the General Assembly, has received ample coverage, so there’s little need to say more here. Worth noting: Noam Chomsky is more positive toward the Bolivarian Revolution than I might have thought (spending one’s life discussing U.S. foreign policy can blunt even the best of anarchists). He even speaks of wanting to meet the Venezuelan leader.

More interesting with regard to the speech is the response from the scum of the Democratic Party. House minority leader Nancy Pelosi (D) referred to Chávez as an "everyday thug." Charles Rangel (D) even went so far as to say "You don’t come into my country; you don’t come into my congressional
district and you don’t condemn my president." Surely he remembers that the U.N. is in his district? And that it’s rather common to hear condemnation of U.S. policies in the U.N.? May they all rot in hell.

Such predictable responses render even more utterly incomprehensible and absurd arguments like this one, from an author who never seems to tire of plugging his own book, and who thinks that it’s up to Chávez to win back the House for the Democrats. Bravo to those same democrats for reminding us of the truth.

Secondly, and in a story which has been much less present in the English-speaking press, is the illegal detention and strip-searching of Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro at JFK Airport. Maduro was relieved of his passport and ticket, and told that he had raised suspicion and required a more thorough security check. This was clearly a response to the Chávez speech. While most press sources are noting that Maduro bought his one-way ticket back to Venezuela the same day and paid in cash, what is neglected are Maduro’s claims that he was interrogated about his role in Chávez’s first coup attempt in 1992.

Interestingly, the Beeb only reports the response offered by U.S. Ambassador to the UN John Bolton: "There was no incident at the airport. This is Venezuelan street theater." But if this were the case, surely the U.S. Ambassador to Venezuela William Brownfield wouldn’t be apologizing so profusely.

And if people weren’t paying attention, there was another retaliation, as New York police cut the power during a speech by Chávez in a Harlem church. NYPD claimed that there was no permit for the event, but how often have you heard of the police shutting off the electricity?

UPDATE: Jon Stewart, who I appreciate very much, shows us (again) the limits of his secular(izing) liberalism…