Hugo Chavez's latest victory

What an end to term limits means for Chavez's socialist vision for Venezuela

"Venezuela just took a democratic step closer to dictatorship," said the Los Angeles Times in an editorial. On Sunday, voters gave President Hugo Chavez the "right to seek re-election ad infinitum." Opposition leaders said the balloting was valid, but Chavez couldn't have won without using government money to rally support. He says the people want to make his Bolivarian revolution permanent, "but this was not democracy in action."

Don't worry, said Alvaro Vargas Llosa in The New Republic. While Chavez's victory means he'll be able to run for re-election indefinitely, "it does not mean he will be able to establish a totalitarian state anytime soon." Millions of Venezuelans still "abhor" Chavez's regime, and their "valiant" opposition will continue to prevent Chavez from turning his country into another Cuba.

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