US Relations with Venezuela

Citgo? Really? Hugo Chavez, US Relations with Venezuela, and Oil Prices
By Dan Wright

Many Americans are calling for boycott of Citgo products lately. Why? The fact that Citgo is 100% owned by the government of Venezuela of which the president is none other than Hugo Chavez -- essentially making him the leader of the Citgo company. Coupled with the continuously rising costs of fuel and energy, many are suspecting foul-play somewhere in the pricing scheme. With the recent attention Mr. Chavez has brought to himself this week, the masses are discovering the linkage between him, Citgo, OPEC, and his intentions for North America to pay HIS PRICE for the barrel.

US political leaders spanning party lines have had enough of Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez's political circus. At the UN annual meeting in New York Tuesday (9/19/06) Chavez referred to President Bush as "The Devil". In his brash speech that rocked political leaders, Chavez uttered, "The devil came here yesterday, and it smells of sulfur still today." Later Tuesday, Chavez kept up his criticism of Bush during a visit to Harlem on Thursday, calling the U.S. president "a sick man" who is unqualified for the job.

In response to Chavez's speech at the UN on Tuesday, Charles Rangel (Rep. Charles Rangel, D-New York) publicly scolded, "You don't come into my country; you don't come into my congressional district and you don't condemn my president."

Even strong Bush critic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-California, was blunt in her criticism of the Venezuelan leader. "He is an everyday thug," she proclaimed.