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Rodriguez: Venezuela Nationalizations Might Be A 'Smokescreen'

Interviewee: Francisco R. Rodriguez
Interviewer: Stephanie Hanson
January 16, 2007

In this week's podcast

Francisco R. Rodriguez, assistant professor of economics and Latin American studies at Wesleyan University, discusses Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's economic policies and argues that his social programs do not actually help the poor. He says that Venezuela's high economic growth has benefited everyone, and the reduction in poverty is "modest" compared to prior periods of growth. He says Chavez's plan to nationalize the telecommunications and electricity industries might well be a "smokescreen" for his aggressive consolidation of political power.

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