Apparently it doesn't mean "democracy" according to John Negroponte or the USG.
Was it "radical populism" that spurred the American Revolution?
They just don't like Chavez because he has taken the mask off their ugly imperial capitalist faces.
So what are you going to do about it? Not import his oil? I doubt it.
http://rawstory.com/news/2006/Chavez_a_threat_to_democracy_US_int_01302007.html"John Negroponte, during hearings on his nomination to become deputy secretary of state, warned that frustration in Latin America about the lack of prosperity under democratic governments could further fuel the populism advocated by Chavez."
.......could the lack of prosperity under regimes you support be intentional as part of WTO policies and US support (militarily and fiscally)for corporate profits at the expense of working people?
"Washington has objected to Chavez's crackdown on free media and civil rights groups, and says democratic institutions under his rule have been marginalized. Chavez is expected to be granted powers this week to issue decrees without parliamentary approval - a move that has been criticized by Venezuelan opposition parties as a step towards totalitarianism."
......is "crackdown" a propaganda buzzword for "regulating"? A free media is useless to the people unless it tells the truth, not spread lies, as the US media is "free" to do to it's own people. Wasn't the Iraq war enabled in the US by the "free media" acting as the propaganda agents they are? Chavez being GRANTED powers sounds like he went through a process where the people approved his granted powers, unlike the dictator George W. Bush who grants HIMSELF powers with his signing statements. Tell me who is it that has their army and navy thousands of miles across the globe invading other countries? the US or Venezuela? Gimme a break.