William Fisher examines Hugo Chavez’ program to sell discounted heating oil to poor communities in the United States. On the merits, it’s hard to tell whether this program is a good idea or not—arguably Chavez could make better use of that money by spending it on poor communities in Venezuela—but it is true that all the sniping at Chavez from various corners of this country is, as Fisher puts it, “petty.” Whatever one might think of Chavez—hero of the oppressed or crazed authoritarian, take your pick (or both)—he’s in no sense a real security threat to the United States.
It’s also worth pointing out that if Republicans and others disapprove of Chavez trying to win friends and influence people by selling heating oil to the poor, they could always stop him by reversing the cruel and gratuitous budget cuts that have been leveled at LIHEAP, the federal low-income heating assistance program, over the past five years. Just a thought.
