The demonstrators - who have been streaming to Libertador Avenue in the heart of Caracas from six different points - chanted "Chavez out" and "Chicken - what are you doing in Argentina?", referring to Mr Chavez's ongoing visit to Buenos Aires.
Then along came Mr. Chavez, a former army colonel and leader of an unsuccessful 1992 coup that converted him into an imprisoned criminal and heroic "champion of the poor." A foolish President Rafael Caldera granted Mr. Chavez a presidential pardon, and Mr. Chavez ran for president on a moderate platform promising sweeping reforms and a healthy house-cleaning of government corruption. This won him wide support from the poor and disarmed the fears of the more wealthy, who hoped Mr. Chavez would deliver on his promises. Mr. Chavez won the presidency with the support of just 35 percent of the electorate.
Soon afterward, the trouble began. Mr. Chavez established friendships with the most radical leaders in the world, beginning with Cuba's Fidel Castro, but also including Libya's Moammar Gadhafi, Iraq's Saddam Hussein (whom he called "My brother"), North Korea's Kim Yong-Il and the Palestinian Yasser Arafat, among others. Mr. Chavez celebrated the September 11 attacks in the United States, and reportedly gave money to the Taliban and al Qaeda. He has supported terrorist Carlos the Jackal, and established close ties with Colombia's narco-terrorists (ELA and the FARC), permitting them to operate, train and rest in Venezuelan territory.
Recently, Venezuela's permissiveness — if not outright support — for terror groups inspired U.S. Army Gen. Richard Boyer to compare Venezuela with Syria. The next day, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said "the government of the United States and the people of Venezuela have a differing view of democracy than does President Chavez." Taken together, these comments are a clear shot across the bow of Mr. Chavez. Mr. Chavez's anti-democratic behavior and support of terror groups is earning him an associate membership in the "axis of evil." ***
Venezuela's Hugo Chavez on Wednesday brushed off demands for a referendum on his controversial presidency and called the drive by his opponents to oust him a "mockery."
In an interview with The Associated Press, Chavez challenged the legitimacy of a new petition for a recall vote, saying many of the signatures were forgeries.
"Some people who have been buried for a while appeared to have signed," Chavez charged, accusing the opposition of acquiring signatures however it could. "They should do a much more serious job."
Chavez said some of the signatures belonged to dead people and others were taken from bank registries. He said his government will challenge the petition.
The signatures "appear in every light to be illegal," said Chavez, speaking at the end of a four-day trip to Buenos Aires.
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"The opposition must recover reason and seek a good leader, which they don't have," Chavez said.
"If they managed to achieve a referendum as it should be done, it's just the same because we'll defeat it as we did three years ago," he said. "The people know what they want and ... they now have a government that doesn't cut deals with the oligarchy ... that doesn't concede to transnational powers."
Chavez's brash style and leftist views have won him a huge following among impoverished Venezuelans alienated by the ruling elites who for decades ran the country, the world's No. 5 oil exporter.
Chavez said his supporters among the poor would turn back any vote to remove him from power.
"Those 600,000 kids in Bolivarian schools who have breakfast and lunch, who have medical care and play sports, have parents that know these kinds of things didn't exist in Venezuela not long ago," he said.
Chavez came to Argentina after stops in Paraguay and Uruguay. He used the tour to promote greater Latin American unity and urged regional leaders to reject U.S.-backed free trade and market policies. He plans a giant street fiesta in Caracas on Saturday.
"While we are going to be having this big nationwide party, the opposition is playing its usual cynical and ironic role," Chavez said in the interview. "It's almost comical."