Chavez Threatens to Freeze Oil Shipments to the US- Again

I’ve talked about Hugo Chavez before. He’s a man who clearly doesn’t like to be told what to do.

So when ExxonMobil took Venezuela to court for illegally seizing its oil assets in the country and asking that some $12 billion be frozen, Chavez wasn’t happy (to put it mildly.) From the AP:

“If you end up freezing (Venezuelan assets) and it harms us, we’re going to harm you,” Chavez said. “Do you know how? We aren’t going to send oil to the United States. Take note, Mr. Bush, Mr. Danger.”

“The outlaws of Exxon Mobil will never again rob us,” Chavez said, saying the Irving, Texas-based oil major acts in concert with “the imperialist government of the United States” and is part of corporate “worldwide mafias.”

You have to admit, the quotes make you chuckle.

“Mr. Danger”???

I doubt President Bush has been called that before.

But what if Chavez is crazy enough to really do it?

It wouldn’t make sense for his country, as we know. The US is Venezuela’s largest crude customer. We’re one of the few countries which can refine the less-refined type of crude.

For the US, Venezuela provides 15 percent of our imports.

Would Chavez really cut off its largest crude customer at a time when unemployment is skyrocketing in the country and inflation is running at over 10%?

Crazier things have been done, I’m afraid.

Stay tuned.