Call Me Stormy

Chavez Mausoleum Targeted

The American capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro was a precise operation, carried out like clockwork.

But there was one notable exception. Among the military targets bombed or strafed was one significant civic structure — the mausoleum containing the remains of former Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, who orchestrated Venezuela fall into socialism in 1998. Sean Penn must be crying in his beer.

Here’s a look back at Chavez’s backward rule, which led one-quarter of  Venezuela’s population to flee the country, mostly to the United States, but also to Spain and other points across Latin America. Patrick Ben-David explains in a Valuetainment short.

Who will take over as the next president of Venezuela? One possibility is Maria Corina Machado, the opposition leader in Venezuela, who recently was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize. Trump, though, indicated he prefers a candidate that could generate more support. It’s not clear who that might be.

Thee air strikes on Caracas began after midnight — around 1:15 a.m. Saturday. Maduro had been captured by 4:20 am. and was arriving, via plane, to New York City by 7:25 a.m.

Under Maduro, Venezuela supplied more than 70 percent of its oil exports to Communist China. The Latin American nation also supplied heavy amounts of oil to radical Islamic groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah, across the Middle East. With the socialists losing their tight control over Venezuela, those supplies can be controlled and/or diverted. So this could dampen danger around the globe. Here’s more from Lori Colley.