Is Chavez isolating himself due to the Zelaya coup?

According to a New York Times article published yesterday the answer is an emphatic “yes.”

In the piece written by Simon Romero, leaders throughout the Americas are leaning towards the “multilateral”, diplomatic approach taken by U.S. president Barack Obama rather than that taken by Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez. Some political commentators have illogically tried to frame Obama and Chavez as Siamese twins since they (along with dozens of other leaders representing differing ideologies) condemned the coup which knocked Honduras’ Manuel Zelaya out of power. Yet as the director of the Americas program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies said, “with Honduras, the Obama administration has taken the mainstream road that is more in sync with other countries in the region”.

Romero warned that Chavez’” antiestablishment rhetoric” still resonates with some around the region and Obama could be in trouble if Chavez’ allegations of CIA involvement in the coup are true. For the time being, however, Chavez may be putting himself in a corner with fewer allies much like one of his most disliked rivals:

(…) Mr. Obama’s nonconfrontational diplomacy seems to have caught Mr. Chávez off balance. “Chávez is beginning to understand that he’s dealing with someone with a very different approach than his predecessor,” said Michael Shifter, vice president of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington policy research group…

Meanwhile, Mr. Chávez’s threats of belligerence in Central America led one opposition party here, Acción Democrática, to issue a statement on Monday that was full of irony: “Hugo Chávez has become the George Bush of Latin America.” - [emphasis added]

What do you think?

(Hat tip: Think Progress.)

Image- Voice of America
Online Sources- New York Times, Gawker, Think Progress