Crisis in Venezuela NOTE: To change the image on this slide, select the picture and delete it. Then click the Pictures icon in the placeholder to insert your own image.
Crisis In Venezuela
Remember our foreign Policy Goals? Protecting National Security Preserving World Peace Promoting Economic Prosperity Humanitarian Ideals
What about our tools? Soft Power Diplomacy: Conducting Negotiations Summits: Meetings of Heads of State Treaties: Peaceful Agreements Trade Relations: Cross-Border Commerce Foreign Aid: Help for less wealthy countries
What about our tools? Hard Power Intelligence Gathering: Assess the threat Covert Action: Secret tactics to influence events Boycotts and Sanctions: Economic Pressure
Crisis In Venezuela What is inflation?
Crisis In Venezuela What does trade deficit mean?
Crisis In Venezuela What is a sanction?
http://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-latin-america-40438022/venezuela-crisis-what-s-going-on https://youtu.be/S1gUR8wM5vA
Crisis In Venezuela
Warm Up 3/15 (#3) Write down one political, one economic, and one social fact about the crisis in Venezuela.
Mrs. Santos is desperately to recover full voice function Mrs. Santos is desperately to recover full voice function. I will not speak above normal volume today. You will need to be quiet, and speak only when called on today. If you cannot do this, you will be asked to step outside until you have some control. If the class as a whole becomes a problem, I will stop teaching and you will be responsible for learning this information on your own.
March 15, 2018 Learning Targets (I can…): *Explain the crisis currently happening in Venezuela *Analyze the effectiveness of American Foreign Policy regarding Venezuela Important Dates: 3/19: Structured Academic Debate on the crisis in Venezuela 3/20: Mini-Quiz on Venezuela Turn in: None Take out: *Crisis in Venz. Research Handout *A place to take notes Agenda: *Crisis in Venezuela *Structured Academic Debates
Crisis In Venezuela Three aspects to the problem Government Corruption- Political Oil Prices & Inflation- Economic Reaction to the Political & Economic-Social Hunger Crime
Background-Hugo Chavez Ruled from 1999 to his death in 2013 Socialist Nationalized industries Socialist Programs Increase in education, unemployment rate dropped, helped the poor Two main reasons for great success Charismatic Oil Boom Put oil money in to social programs
Background-Hugo Chavez Shady Some dictator type policies Restricted freedoms of the press Attempted coups against him – not popular with the upper class & the US government Called President Bush “the Devil” in 2009 UN Speech With $ came CORRUPTION BUT had popular support
Crisis In Venezuela-Political Nicolas Maduro Chavez’s Vice President Chavez named him as his successor No government experience – bus driver He was elected under promises to keep Chavez’s policies going Took over in 2013 soon after oil prices fell Accusations of corruption & mismanagement
Crisis In Venezuela-Political March 2017 Supreme Court tries to take over National Assembly controlled by Maduro’s opponents Reversed ruling 3 days later Riots in the streets to protest government- military set up to maintain order July 2017-Controversial elections set up new assembly Rewrite constitution Power grab? Break down of democracy?
Crisis In Venezuela-Economic Remember Chavez? All about the spending, not so much the saving Not a friend to private business, companies leave Corruption flourishes Controls currency – rise of the black market Oil = 90+% of Venezuelan exports Lower prices on oil = less money coming in
Crisis In Venezuela-Economic Maduro attempts to regulate imports to save value of Venezuelan currency Doesn’t work Rather than raise taxes or cut spending (which he saw as political suicide) Maduro prints more money Inflation skyrockets as a result Corruption companies leave exchange black market loss of jobs crime