by Peter Brookes

In the media, President Hugo Chavez seems to be portrayed more commonly these days as a threat to golf, which he considers "bourgeois" and is trying to eradicate in Venezuela, than to regional stability.

If only that were the case.

Overshadowed by America's strategic distractions with the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq and with terrorism, and nettlesome nuclear troubles with Iran and North Korea, to name a few, Chavez is all but flying under the threat radar.

Alan Caruba

With a hat tip to Rasmussen Reports, here is the latest score on Obama's job performance approval/disapproval polling. I think that squigely line heading down means a lot of people disapprove.

by Jim Kouri

During the Vietnam War, we had "Hanoi Jane" a/k/a Jane Fonda, an American actress who espoused Marist ideology and actually provided enemy troops with a Hollywood-style photo-op. One of the most famous photographs of the Vietnam era is that of the Oscar-winning actress sitting atop a North Vietnam anti-aircraft gun while she adorned herself in a North Vietnam soldier's helmet.

About 25 years before Fonda's arguably treasonous spectacle, a Japanese-American woman served the Imperial Army of Japan as its "voice of Japan" during World War II. While Tokyo Rose was a generic name given by the American military and its allies in the Pacific to English-speaking female broadcasters who bombarded the airwaves with Japanese propaganda, the best known was Iva Toguri D-Aguino, also an American citizen.

Satire by John W. Lillpop

When former comic and bankrupt talk-show host Al Franken was manacled to the U.S. Senate last year, political scholars feared that the most deliberative body in the world would be transformed into a haven for sick jokes and bizarre acting out.

The quiet dignity and reserved demeanor associated with the esteemed title, “US Senator” was, according to pundits, threatened by the unseemly image of Bozo the Clown as protector of the US Constitution, and 300 million or so Americans in the peanut galleries from coast to coast.

CHICAGO - Five men who allegedly conspired to locally distribute 1,800 pounds of marijuana were charged in federal court on Saturday following their arrests on Friday. The charges resulted from an investigation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

José Mejia, 34; Jesus Vieyra, 46; and Daniel Villelda, 45; all of Brownsville, Texas; and Enrique Haro, 43; and Ismael Cornejo, 26; both of Chicago, were charged March 6 in the Northern District of Illinois for possessing 1,800 pounds of marijuana with the intent to distribute.

A LOOK AT THE 2012 GOP PRESIDENTIAL RACE

Former U.S. Congressman John LeBoutillier

Because Mitt Romney is on a pre-2012 presidential campaign book tour – and because Sarah Palin is constantly in the news – and because President Barack Obama is in self-destruct mode - let’s take a look far, far ahead at the present state of the 2012 GOP race for president. After all, 2012 is now wide-open:

Romney is a bit hot right now. He is back in the news, on TV and radio shows. He is a good-looking man and with a business background he can speak to the still-deteriorating economic situation all around us. He has learned from some of his mistakes from the 2008 race, too. He now appears more humble.

Atlanta — United States Customs and Border Protection officers at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport arrested three men wanted for drug and stalking charges, officials announced on March 10. The arrests were made on Monday while CBP officers were conducting routine inspections of arriving and departing international passengers.

The first individual, 33-year-old United States citizen Matthew Bader, arrived from Saint Lucia. He was wanted by authorities in Georgia on two counts of marijuana possession with intent to distribute and interference with government property.

Sullivan City, Texas — Border Patrol agents seized more than 500 pounds of marijuana Monday near Sullivan City, Texas.

Border Patrol agents observed an older model vehicle traveling north from the Rio Grande River along an access road. When agents attempted to follow the vehicle, the driver accelerated and lost control. The vehicle crashed into a dirt embankment at the end of the road and the driver fled into the nearby brush.

Alexandria Bay, N.Y. - U.S. Customs and Border Protection Field Operations announced the arrest of two United States citizens and a Haitian national in the smuggling attempt.

On March 7, CBP officers at the Alexandria Bay, N.Y. port of entry encountered 37-year-old Vernetta Sullivan and her sister, 39-year-old Conay Robinson, both United States citizens from Virginia, as they applied for admission into the United States. The subjects advised CBP officers that they were returning to United States after visiting friends in Montreal, Quebec. A cursory inspection of the rear cargo area of the sport utility vehicle being driven by Ms. Sullivan revealed several pieces of luggage and a large hockey bag. Upon closer inspection of the hockey bag, CBP officers discovered a male subject hiding inside the bag. The male subject was removed from the hockey bag and all three individuals were escorted to the CBP secure facility for further processing.

SANTA ANA, CA. - An Orange County man surrendered to federal authorities Monday morning after being charged with conspiracy for allegedly orchestrating a visa fraud scheme involving dozens of foreign students enrolled at institutions throughout Southern California, including several junior colleges and three California State University campuses.

Foreign students from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Kuwait, Turkey, and Qatar allegedly paid thousands of dollars to the defendant and his associates to take college classes, exams and placement tests on their behalf so they could maintain their lawful immigration status as foreign students.

Buffalo, N.Y. – U.S. Customs and Border Protection Field Operations announced the arrest of a Nigerian citizen on charges of false claim to citizenship, misuse of a passport and false statements.

San Diego - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the ports of entry on the California border with Mexico over the weekend, from 6 a.m. Friday through 6 a.m. today, stopped 294 illegal aliens who attempted to illegally enter the country hidden within vehicles or by presenting fraudulent documents or valid documents not legally issued to them.

Miami - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at Miami international airport apprehended numerous subjects this weekend attempting to enter the United States by fraudulent means. One 25-year-old male was apprehended when he presented a U.S. passport that he had obtained fraudulently. A 22-year-old male was found to be in possession of a counterfeit U.S. Non-Immigrant visa and there were four other incidents where subjects had obtained backdated admission stamps in their passports in order to conceal previous overstays.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano today announced the designation of Greece as a member of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP)—strengthening passenger information sharing and ensuring strict security standards while streamlining travel for Greek citizens visiting the United States.

by Kim R. Holmes, Ph.D.

Many Europeans cheered when Barack Obama was elected president. Disdain for his predecessor ran so high that, even in Britain, pollsters found that George W. Bush was considered a greater threat to peace than Kim Jong-il and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Only Osama bin Laden outpolled him.

But President Obama hasn't lived up to European expectations. The disillusionment is showing. French President Nicolas Sarkozy has characterized him as weak. And at a U.N. Security Council meeting on nonproliferation, Mr. Sarkozy chided Mr. Obama with the reminder that "We live in a real world, not a virtual world."