Citgo boycott rekindled after terrorist link suspected

Citgo boycott rekindled after terrorist link suspected

Reports of the United States looking into whether Venezuela could be added to the State Department’s list of countries that support terrorist groups have rekindled calls across the country to boycott Citgo gas stations.

Citgo is owned by the Venezuelan government. That means it is controlled by and supports Hugo Chavez. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has strong dictatorial tendencies that bother most Americans and his continued slurs and anti-U.S. comments have rankled millions. Many believe that local money pumped into Citgo coffers fuel anti-American ideals. Most say "it’s not Citgo, it’s who owns Citgo."

Many American business owners involved with Citgo are changing suppliers. Most cite a drop in sales because of the concern of sending local money to a county that denounces the United States and are moving to protect themselves from being linked to the Venezuelan president. Early on, 7-Eleven stores announced they would cancel a 20-year contract with Citgo that supplied 2,100 stations. Stations are usually independently owned and make their own decision as to what suppliers to use.

Now, new information allegedly linking Chavez directly to terrorism and a leftist Columbian terror group may fans the flames of a boycott.

Proof that Chavez was funding terrorism would be a direct violation of the United Nations and give the United States a legal reason to impose sanctions against them. Venezuela could be joining a list of counties like Iran, North Korea, and Syria that support terrorism.

Officials say new documents say Chavez had pledged up to $300 million to Colombia's Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. It is designated by the State Department to be a terrorist organization. The documents were found on the personal computer of FARC terrorist leader Raul Reyes, who was killed last week.

According to an article in Investors Business Daily it "turns out the FARC had a friend called ‘Angel’ who was none other than Chavez, the oil-rich Venezuelan dictator whose ties to the FARC go back at least 15 years. The new revelations showed that he was using state oil company cash to finance terrorists."