The Devil and Mr. Bush

The Nation's Katrina Vanden Heuvel writes, "Love him, hate him, fear him, revere him, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is an elected world leader whose fiery criticisms of US foreign policy can't simply be ignored or ridiculed.

Maybe Chavez did himself, his larger alternative agenda and his country a disservice by treating the UN podium as the set of his weekly TV show at home. His "The Devil is Mr. Bush" riff--an obviously allegorical one if you ask me--delivered with an actor's dramatic flair and a good deal of humor risked drowning out other important messages he did deliver. For example, how many know that he laid out an innovative four-point program to renew and reform the UN--and spoke eloquently about how and why this "era is giving birth to a heart"?

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