[Captain Kirk]

What’s the big deal? Nixon did the same thing (and more!) with the greatest mass murderer of the twentieth century: Mao.

[oscars300]

Nixon had a compelling reason: To divide the Communist alliance and make the US more secure.

Obama, on the other hand, has no real geopolitical prize to gain from fistbumping Hugo Chavez. It’s not as if Venezuela is a major international power.

[dfwgator]

What’s the big deal? Nixon did the same thing (and more!) with the greatest mass murderer of the twentieth century: Mao.

The difference was, at least we were trying to use Mao and the ChiComs against the Soviets, so at least there was some "strategery" involved there.

[Ipberg]

What’s the big deal? Nixon did the same thing (and more!) with the greatest mass murderer of the twentieth century: Mao.

Nixon was trying to turn Mao against the Soviets and Viet Cong so that America could win both the cold war in Europe and the hot war in Vietnam. Obama is not trying to turn Chavez against anyone.