Chavez's "47 percent" moment

The comandante presidente said the following during a rally in Maturin: “There can be some people could be unsatisfied with the failures of our government, that the streets...

The comandante presidente said the following during a rally in Maturin:

“There can be some people could be unsatisfied with the failures of our government, that the streets aren’t fixed, that electricity is out and water isn’t running, that they don’t have a job and their house wasn’t delivered on time…  …That’s not what’s at stake. What’s really at stake is the life of the fatherland.”

Who’s the “heart of the fatherland”? Exactly. No es otro sino el papa de los helados.

Even if this kind of comment from Chavez is nothing new (the older comment starts at 0:32), the fact that he said this a week from the election shows what’s all really about for him: Staying in power no matter what. Tienes problemas? Bueno, esto es lo que hay!

This comment brings to mind the infamous “47 percent” comment in the U.S. – the context is different, but the experience of hearing the candidate speak out loud words that confirm every negative storyline the other side’s campaign has spent months trying to establish is very much the same.