Vice President Diosdado Cabello dismissed Bustillos' comments, saying reports of orders to repress the protesters were "lies." Defense Minister Jose Vicente Rangel declined to comment.
Guard troops took positions around the building in eastern Caracas on Tuesday to protect it.
"The president of the republic ordered the National Guard to use force to remove people in front of (the building)," Bustillos told Associated Press Television News.
He urged officers not to obey "a presidential lunacy that is going to (ruin) the name of the armed forces, especially the National Guard." He also appealed for calm, both from the opposition and the government.
Interior Minister Ramon Rodriguez Chacin said earlier Wednesday the government would take any action "under the law" to preserve order.****
I'll give your thread a mega ping...
It beats the alternative, to which Venezuelans are fairly opened minded to just about now.
By word of mouth, I've heard that Chavez has been busy insulating himself from personal attack. Bodyguards, personalized fortifications, security and accompanying routines. I guess he's learned from his mentor, Fidel.
Just the same, I hope Chavez meets an appropriate end at the hands of the people he is attempting to enslave.
From ft.com via news.google.com:
Speculation mounted in the afternoon that Mr Chávez, who cancelled a scheduled visit to Costa Rica, was close to decreeing a state of emergency or a suspension of constitutional liberties. Business and union leaders jointly announced the indefinite strike, arguing that the government had failed to present solutions to the economic crisis, particularly the situation at the state oil company.
There were also signals that the armed forces may have pressed for Mr Chávez to resign. Brigadier-general Nestor González, the highest ranking officer in the army to criticise the president publicly, said Mr Chávez was the cause of the escalating political crisis.
I bet you that when the rioting breaks out, the people beating the crap out of the anti-Chavez protesters will not be in any sort of uniforms, they will be wearing street clothes, and guided by Cuban operatives.
In the suitcases?
Find Chavez's Swiss bank account, it must be growing by leaps and bounds.