LA Quick Hits: UNA-USELESS, Hugo Moves Troops, Nacho Not So Libre &, Ships Sit

• UNASUR's attempt to mediate Venezuela/Colombia kerfluffle fizzles. Hugo then moves Venezuelan troops to the border.
• Sinaloa Cartel drug lord "Nacho" Coronel was killed. He is an ally of Sinaloa kingpin, "Chapo" Guzman. NYT posits that people aren't going to feel safer.
• 30 ships have been waiting over two weeks to be offloaded at Port of Cabello in Venezuela. This as scandal grows over the way Ports allocate resources.

NutRoots Nation v. (Nutso) RightOnline

So I was checking out the pictures of the RightOnline gathering which competed with the NutRoots Nation gathering this year. First there is the rather obvious - all the attendees appear to be...oh, how do I say this...well, they are all Caucasian. The presenters also seem to be melanin deficient with the notable exception of Herman "He Can Be President!" Cain. The truth is that the white thing doesn't really bother me that much, but the grey does. Seriously, look at all the doughy grey haired people at the RightOnline photos and compare with NutRoots. The lefties have twice as many people but not a grey hair in the house, unless you are looking at the speakers.

Lo Que Serra, Serra

Council of the Americas has an update on the upcoming Brazilian elections. Jose Serra of the Social Democratic Party of Brazil (PDSB) once had a 20 point lead but Lula's girl Dilma Roussef of the Worker's Party (PT) leads in one poll and is only down by one in another. All this can be attributed to Lula's popularity. The PDSB, despite its name, is essentially a center party comparatively speaking. The third place candidate is the Green Party candidate and doesn't have a prayer.

Baba-Bull Watch: BonkoBert Keeps it Real

Here is what annoys me about Humberto Fontova. He is actually quite smart, even knowledgeable but he is also completely and totally off of his rocker. Bert usually starts off with a statement of fact then slowly but ever so surely his posts will degenerate into some gnarled rant of some sort that essentially casts anyone who doesn't agree with him wholeheartedly to have been Che's triggerman at La Cabana. Bert reminds me of those characters on Chapelle Show who keep it real...they have a choice to make: be smart, think it through or keep it real. BonkoBert, in case you were wondering, always keeps it real.

His latest post is easily the most disjointed insane rant ever composed - you need a Little Orphan Annie Secret Decoder Ring to divine what the hell he is talking about. He somehow mashes together the commie Vencermos Brigade with Saladrigas, Joe Garcia and anyone who isn't an embargo fan. I almost want to see the embargo lifted so I can see Bert's head explode.

The Green Herring: Eco-Friendly Jobs Aren't Enough

The left-leaning New America Foundation issued Talking Points that note the obvious - green jobs will not be enough to kick start the economy. Just a snippet:

It was unwise of the Obama administration and Congress to rely so heavily on the renewable energy sector to drive the recovery. Spending on renewables is slow to get out of the door, leaks to foreign companies, is an inadequate driver of jobs and growth, and may not create a strong exporting industry.

2 Angles on Angle

FrumForum notes that even the Republican friendly Rasmussen polls have Angle trailing Reid. WE are talking about a sitting Senator with negatives in the 48% range. You can run the Easter Bunny and probably beat him. This potential unmitigated fiasco feeds into the greater narrative that the Tea Party fringe has overreached even before it comes to power. Right on cue comes Erick Erickson saying essentially that Angle has Reid right she wants him. Really? Is there any politician in the planet that wants to be down on the polling to an overwhelmingly unpopular Senator?

LA Quick Hits: Mex Drug Cartels Go South, Don Diego Lives!, Correa the Commie, Begging Bolivia & More

• Colombia is not backing down on its FARC accusations and tells Hugo where to stick his "Plan de Paz."
• Great piece in WaPost on Mex Drug Cartel Violence going to Central America. Did you know that homicides per capita in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras far outstrip Mexico's?
• Kidnappers of Don Diego release photo and letter. Depressing and awful.
• Correa starts to set the stage to nationalize petrol companies.
• Ortega talks up US Sec of Labor Solis, kind of nauseating actually. She is visiting the Nicas.
• Alvaro Vargas Llosa is cautiously optimistic about the release of political prisoners in Cuba. Even then, he is too optimistic. The Church got a role in all of this because Ortega is a tool and can be manipulated not because it brings anything to the table.
• US Charges d' Affaires in Bolivia whines and begs Evo to cooperate in fight against narcos. Seriously, why should he? So the US can help the way they help Mex? The way they helped sink Colombia to the brink of collapse? Why should they lift bring more killing, corruption and crime just to raise the price of cocaine by $1 a kilo? Evo should give him the middle finger and say - "We don't snort or smoke, you deal with it."
• Maradona is out - the vote was unanimous.
• Peru's State of the Union/4th of July is tomorrow - one legislator's plea..."Don't lie."

Raul Doesn't Speak, What Does it Mean?

More regular than the swallows at San Juan Capistrano are the Castros on July 26. So yesterday rolls around and we are left Castro-less at the mic. The Babalu crowd was as muted as Raul but they should have been concerned. By not bothering to speak By going sotto voce Raul seems to be underlining their often made statement that the "Revolution" is about something more than the Castro Bros. True, he could have sent a stronger signal by having someone other than octogenarian-to-be keynote, but the point is made nonetheless. Very subtle but the message is clear.

Obama's Worst Nightmare? Really?

World Net Daily breathlessly asks if Herman Cain is Obama's worst nightmare...say what? In case you were wondering Herman Cain is thinking about running for president and since he is black...well, of course, because the only reason Obama is president is because he is black. So conservatives of the fringe really believe that if they get their own black guy then Obama will be crushed! I don't even know what to say or make out of this case of ODS.

Peru Prez Race - Good News/Bad News

Americas Quarterly Blog notes that Keiko Fujimori has a sliver of a lead, +2, over Lima mayor Luis Castaneda. Ollanta Humala has slipped to fourth...in case you were wondering that is the good news.

DeMint's Creative Poll Watching

I just got a fundraising e-mail from Jim DeMint's Senate Conservative Fund touting the prospects of Ron Johnson against Russ Feingold. All well and good except DeMint proudly mentions that Johnson is in a statistical dead heat in a Rasmussen poll that has him up by one. While true that two of the three other polls also feature a dead heat, they also show Feingold is up by two. The third poll has Feingold up by five.

Astronomy + History + Rachel Weisz = Perfection

I was about seven when I became obsessed with Astronomy. I couldn't get enough of it and I would troll through bookstores and libraries looking for anything that I could read on it. Unfortunately, I figured out at some point that if I ever wanted pursue anything in the study of the heavens that I would have actually use math for something more than figuring out how much tax to pay for a pack of Topps baseball cards. Still had a thing for astronomy. About the same time though, I had also developed a love of history. Now I find out that there is a movie that captures these two passions of mine and joins them with a third Rachel Weisz. So I there's a historical piece on astronomy that features Rachel Weisz naked that just came out. I may never need to go to the movies again.

LA Quick Hits: FCH - Security Important, Hugo is Scared, 2 Cool 4 School, Cristina Knocks US (Again), Samper Whines, Have a Coke and a Smile & More

• Understatement of the day: Calderon says security is a national priority.
• Blake says Calderon has told him to focus on security.
• Hugo declines Santos inauguration invite and threatens to break off relations. He said he feared for his life if he went to Colombia.
• Four Colombian reporters detained in Venezuela won't be sent back till Monday.
• It's so hot over here that I sweat just think about going outside, but in the southern cone they are freezing their butts off. Bolivia is closing the schools through Wednesday.
• In Bolivia drug traffickers have made inroads in 27 impoverished communities.
• Cristina backs Mex on Arizona law...imagine my surprise.
• Former Prez Samper laments the decline of the Liberal Party and looks to the PRI for inspiration. Read the interview and see why the Libs in Colombia have no chance. Vague notions and embittered sniping is not going to get anyone elected.
• It's been awhile but activists want justice for the Bolivian disappeared and those that suffered under the Meza regime.
• Coca Colla takes the fizzy drink industry back to its roots, so to speak.

LA Quick Hits: FARC in Venezuela, Hugo Gets Pissed, Santos Invites Neighbors, Car Bomb in Mex, Killing Labor, Bolivar is Dead, Peru "Slows" & More

• FARC and ELN leaders are chilling out in Venezuela. Colombians have pictures and film to prove it - the evidence goes back to 2002 and...
• Venezuela is SHOCKED by the allegations...Hugo pulls his ambassador from Colombia. That Ambassador must have some pretty awesome frequent flier miles.
• You're invited! Santos invites Hugo and Correa to his inauguration...good luck with that.
• First car bomb in Mexico's drug war goes off in Ciudad Juarez - four dead.
• Mexican drug cartels have US made grenades.
• Argentina oks same-sex unions - Cristina takes a swipe at the US, of course.
• Hugo's unions take on the old unions and 75 union leaders have died. How come we only hear about Colombia?
• Cuban Commie spy is sentenced for life. His wife gets off easy with only six and three quarter years.
• Not a parody - Hugo exhumes Simon Bolivar, speaks to the remains and relates it all to a national audience. The crazy thing is that if he ran tomorrow, Hugo would probably still get re-elected.
• Cardinal Ortega visited US in June - met someone, but Obama Admin is not confirming who.
• Peruvian economy continues to sizzle, growing 9.2% in May
• Happy Birthday Plan Colombia! $8 billion, 84% reduction in terrorist attacks, 88% reduction in kidnappings, 58% in coca production and 45% reduction in homicides.
• Correa gears up for war against crime.
• Ten candidates for Prez of Brazil, only Dilma and Serra matter.
• Twelve Candidates for Mayor of Lima, right and center right candidates leading.

NYT: Economy Sucks. Blame the Rich!

Not only don't we tax them enough but those darned rich folk aren't spending enough to get us out of the recession. NYT has an article saying the rich are not spending enough to get us out of recession. What is interesting is how this parallels other articles noting how businesses and banks are holding onto cash. The narrative in those pieces is that uncertainty over Obama policies and increased regulation are scaring away investment. The narrative in the NYT piece is....well I have no idea. They manage not to mention anything or anyone even remotely tied to the Obama Admin. I mean, they do not even ask anyone in the government why the rich are not spending money. It is almost as if they are afraid that readers would make some sort of association and blame Obama anyway so they won't mention him in hopes that we might not blame him somehow for all this.

One last thing the article quotes an expert from "left-leaning" Institute for Policy Studies. Left-leaning? Is NYT going to start referring to the KKK as a fraternal organization?

Dear Harry Reid, Be Careful What You Wish For...

Stephen Moore has a predictably fawning piece on Sharron Angle in WSJ. Truth be told I would have preferred anyone but Angle to go toe to toe against Harry Reid but something in Moore's profile caught my attention. Moore notes that Reid backers are "gleeful", in Moore's words to be facing a "right-wing extremist." It is hubris like this that gets politicians in trouble. Jimmy Carter's people were thrilled that RR got the GOP nod and that didn't turn out so hot for them. Pretty sure that there

LA Round Up: Vicky Cashes In, AMLO Again, Alvaro-n-Hugo & Peru Explodes

• Vicky Pelaez is going to get PAID by the Ruskies. Like she wasn't getting paid before.
• Because it wasn't fun enough the first time "El Mesias Tropical" is gearing up to do it again. Ebrard is playing nice for now, but no way he lets AMLO get the PRD nod without a fight.
• Camacho Solis coordinator of the lefty Mexicans (PRD, PT and Convergencia) says they need to stick to one candidate in 2012 - good luck if the consensus isn't el Peje.
• Year to year numbers for May show Peru exports to the Americas up 30%. All that and no Export Initiative? Amazing how that works.
• Venezuela blames Uribe for keeping relations testy - I'm SHOCKED!

It's Easy Being Greene: The LiLo Edition

How does a dirtbag like Jeff Greene even get to be considered to be a legitimate candidate for the US Senate? Seriously, how does this happen? How awful a candidate is Kendrick Meek that this can actually happen? Don't ask me how this happen but the future Senator from the state of Florida (JK!) was photographed last year hanging with everyone's favorite SCAM anklet donning mess and rumored milkaholic, Lindsay Lohan. Greene and Lilo were down in St. Barth's. Wait...St. Barth's...seriously only the cheese-eating beret wearing elitists at Salon would call it St. Barth's.

Oil: Why So High?

For us market dummies Ronald Bailey explains what is going on with the price of oil and why it makes no sense. Depend is down, supply is up but prices insist on racing skywards. Bailey does admit a political factor and a falling dollar contribute but speculation is definitely contributing to the rise:

That brings us to speculation. Evans observes that since September 2003, the total number of open crude oil futures and options contracts rose by 364 percent. Meanwhile the global demand for petroleum rose by just 8.2 percent. "So the futures and options market has become more important than the physical supplies in driving the price," concludes Evans. "We are seeing investment flows into the oil market that don't have anything to do with the demand and supply of oil."

Investors are treating oil as a hedge against inflation and a falling dollar. Oil markets are part of a negative positive feedback loop in which higher oil prices contribute to higher inflation, which in turn lowers the value of the dollar, which boosts oil prices, and so forth. In other words, the oil market is coming to resemble the gold market (which has also been soaring). Evans notes that most gold traders don't even ask the question of how much gold was mined last year or how much spare gold mining capacity there is.

So where will prices end up? Bailey sees the bubble bursting at some point:

No one is predicting $10 per barrel oil. However, once the current bubble bursts, both Evans and Lynch believe that the price of crude will settle at around $60 to $70 per barrel in the next couple of years. "It's very hard to pinpoint just how long a bubble can expand before it breaks. Getting the timing right is not an easy matter," says Evans. But he adds, "I think that this is the riskiest time to be long in crude oil since 1980."

The Hugo Dems

WSJ has an editorial on what it labels the "Chavez Democrats." WSJ correctly castigates the Dems for trying to slap down Colombia during its high stakes confrantation with Hugo. They also note that the "soft power" lovers of the left seem to have forgotten what soft power is about:

Even as Mr. Chávez was doing his war dance, Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus was warning the White House not to send the Colombia deal to the Hill for a vote without the permission of Democratic leaders. He was seconded by Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel, who told Congress Daily that "they don't have the votes for it, it's not going to come on the floor," adding that "what they [the White House] don't understand it's not the facts on the ground, it's the politics that's in the air."

Mr. Rangel is right about the politics. No matter what U.S. strategic interests may be in Colombia, this is an election year in America. And Democrats don't want to upset their union and anti-trade allies. The problem is that the time available to pass anything this year is growing short. The closer the election gets, the more leverage protectionists have to run out the clock on the Bush Presidency. The deal has the support of a bipartisan majority in the Senate, and probably also in the House. Sooner or later the White House will have to force the issue.

Unfortunately the ed. goes overboard bringing up the supposed fraud of the Hugo recall of 2004. Fraud or not he still had overwhelming support at the time. It was unlikely that he would have been defeated in that instance. WSJ singles out my personal favorites Delahunt and Dodd as being particularly close to Hugo:

These are the same Democrats who preach the virtues of "soft power" and diplomacy, while deriding Mr. Bush for being too quick to use military force. But trade is a classic form of soft power that would expand U.S. and Latin ties in a web of commercial interests. More than 8,000 U.S. companies currently export to Colombia, nearly 85% of which are small and medium-sized firms. Colombia is already the largest South American market for U.S. farm products, and the pact would open Colombia to new competition and entrepreneurship.

Which brings us back to Mr. Chávez and his many Democratic friends. Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd's early support helped the strongman consolidate his power. Former President Jimmy Carter blessed Mr. Chávez's August 2004 recall victory, despite evidence of fraud. And then there are the many House Democrats, current and former, who have accepted discount oil from Venezuela and then distributed it in the U.S. to boost their own political fortunes. Joseph P. Kennedy II and Massachusetts Congressman Bill Delahunt have been especially cozy with Venezuela's oil company. If Democrats spurn free trade with Colombia, these Democratic ties with Mr. Chávez will deserve more political scrutiny.

Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are both competing for union support. But if they wanted to demonstrate their own Presidential qualities, they'd be privately telling Ms. Pelosi to pass the Colombia pact while Mr. Bush is still in office. That would spare either one of them from having to spend political capital to pass it next year.Instead, both say they oppose the deal on grounds that Mr. Uribe has not done more to protect "trade unionists." In fact, Mr. Uribe has done more to reduce violence in Colombia than any modern leader in Bogotá. The real question for Democrats is
whether they're going to choose Colombia -- or Hugo Chávez.