Great piece by the BBC’s Tom Gibb:
In the days before the overthrow of President Chavez, the US State department was urging caution, saying Washington would not support a military coup or the unconstitutional overthrow of the Venezuelan leader.
But after his removal, the White House reaction appeared remarkably different – with officials clearly pleased at the result.
Far from condemning the ouster of a democratically-elected president, US officials blamed the crisis on President Chavez himself – accusing him of ordering supporters to open fire on anti-government demonstrators.