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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, Hugo Rafael Chavez Frias is the current President
3 of Venezuela; and
 
4     WHEREAS, In 2002, President Chavez tried to take over the
5 Caracas city police force, which reports to an opposition
6 mayor; the Venezuelan Supreme Court ordered Chavez to restore
7 the force's autonomy; an opposition strike occurred in January
8 of 2003 and violence ensued, resulting in two deaths; and
 
9     WHEREAS, In October of 2005, President Chavez accused what
10 he called the "North American empire" of threatening "all life
11 on the planet"; and
 
12     WHEREAS, In August of 2006, President Chavez made
13 statements comparing Israel to Hitler; and
 
14     WHEREAS, In September of 2006, President Chavez delivered a
15 speech to the United Nations General Assembly condemning U.S.
16 President George Bush; in the speech, Chavez referred to
17 President Bush as "the devil", adding that Bush had come to the
18 United Nations General Assembly to "share his nostrums to try
19 to preserve the current pattern of domination, exploitation and
20 pillage of the peoples of the world"; in response, U.S. House
21 Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-California) stated "He is an

 

 

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1 everyday thug"; and
 
2     WHEREAS, President Chavez has undergone criticism from the
3 global community for what is considered to be an excess usage
4 of police action; and
 
5     WHEREAS, In May of 2007, President Chavez silenced the
6 popular Radio Caracas Television (RCTV) and replaced it with a
7 state-run broadcast station; the station had been on the air
8 for 53 years and aired news broadcasts with a decidedly
9 anti-governmental perspective; it was one of only a handful of
10 private broadcast stations that openly criticized the
11 government; and
 
12     WHEREAS, Media outlets have accused the Chavez
13 administration of intimidating their journalists using
14 specially-dispatched gangs; and
 
15     WHEREAS, In November of 2007 and in February of 2008,
16 President Chavez threatened to cut off oil shipments to the
17 United States; and
 
18     WHEREAS, President Chavez's warm and public friendship
19 with Cuban President Fidel Castro has compromised the U.S.
20 policy of isolating Cuba diplomatically and economically; and
 

 

 

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1     WHEREAS, The U.S. State Department released a report in
2 April of 2008 which states that President Chavez is not
3 cooperating with U.S. anti-terror efforts and has "deepened
4 Venezuelan relationships with state sponsors of terrorism Iran
5 and Cuba"; it further notes that Venezuelan weapons stocks have
6 turned up in the hands of Colombian terrorist organizations;
7 therefore, be it
 
8     RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL
9 ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we encourage the State
10 of Illinois and its citizens to not conduct business with
11 President Hugo Chavez or any companies associated with
12 President Hugo Chavez; and be it further
 
13     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
14 presented to the Governor.