Pat Robertson Calls For Assassination of President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela

August 23, 2005 - The Christian televangelist mullah, Pat Robertson, also a former Republican presidential candidate who is the head of an Evangelical Zionist Christian group and host of the "700 Club" an Evangelical Zionist Christian daily TV show, yesterday called for the assassination of Venezuelan's democratically elected President, Hugo Chavez.

The Christian mullah, Pat Robertson, said:

- - There was a popular coup that overthrew him, and what did the United States State Department do about it? Virtually nothing. And as a result, within about 48 hours that coup was broken. Chavez was back in power. But we had a chance to move in. He has destroyed the Venezuelan economy, and he's going to make that a launching pad for Communist infiltration and Muslim extremism all over the continent. You know, I don't know about this doctrine of assassination. But if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it.

It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war, and I don't think any oil shipments will stop. But this man is a terrific danger and the United States, this is in our sphere of influence, so we can't let this happen. Chavez is becoming shriller in his condemnations of America. On Sunday, in an appearance with Castro, he said: - "The grand destroyer of the world, and the greatest threat is represented by U.S. imperialism."- -

President, Hugo Chavez was responding to remarks made by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on his way home from visits to Paraguay and Peru last week. Referring to social uprisings in Bolivia that have pushed out two presidents in less than two years, Rumsfeld told reporters that Venezuela and Cuba have been influencing the Andean nation in unhelpful ways.

Uneasy about the close relationship between Castro and Chavez, Rumsfeld and other U.S. officials have repeatedly said that the two men are fomenting instability in Latin America. Both leaders have consistently denied the accusations.

The Christian mullah, Pat Robertson, concluded:

- - We have the Monroe Doctrine, we have other doctrines that we have announced, and without question, this is a dangerous enemy to our south, controlling a huge pool of oil, that could hurt us very badly. We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability. We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one, you know, strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with. - -

- - Read Amy Goodman's Report From Democracy Now - -

- - Also Read Pat Robertson is Not a Christian - By Charley Reese - -