VENEZUELA: 06 Jan. UPDATE: Legislature Meets; Chavez Likes Idea Of New U.S. Ambassador Nominee.

AP/ M.HERALD/ IAN JAMES /

    President Hugo Chavez likes the U.S. government's suggestion that it may nominate a new ambassador to Venezuela instead of former nominee Larry Palmer, whom Chavez trashed because of some comments Palmer made.
    He even joked that Washington might name an American he knows and likes, maybe Noam Chomsky or Bill Clinton.
   "I hope they name Oliver Stone ... Sean Penn," said Chavez on TV. "We have many friends there."

  ALSO, today's WSJ has an excellent but somewhat technical analysis by David Luhnow of Venezuela's new soon to be seated but powerless legislature, clipped by Chavez's recent moves.
He labels it as "no longer a full democracy."
   "After September elections gave the opposition big gains in congress, Chávez and his allies in the lame duck legislature passed a series of laws that, among other things, gave the president the power to rule by decree for the next 18 months, bypassing the congress."
 Unfortunately, a FREE LINK is NOT AVAILABLE!


BUT FOR AP UPDATE : Special By Phil Gunson/

  A new parliament had an acrimonious session with bitter opposition complaints about unconstitutional behavior, shouts of ``murderers'' and chants of ``Uh, ah, Chávez isn't leaving!''

      Also, hundreds of Chavez opponents demonstrated in support of their lawmakers.

"I hope they fight for all of us Venezuelans who voted for democracy," said Maria Eugenia Escalona, a 53-year-old housewife.
  Chavez believes that "democracy is impossible under capitalism.''
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/01/05/2002747/protests-insults-as-parliament.html