Newt Gingrich isn't the only portly revolutionary stirring up trouble while running for president. Hugo Chavez, the Fidel-worshiping steward of Venezuela's Bolivarian Revolution, has his own tough re-election fight on his hands at the moment.
Instead of annoying robocalls, Hugo's supporters took a different tact to inspire the base earlier this week: One group released photos of young children brandishing assault rifles and wearing revolutionary scarves in front of a mural of Jesus toting an AK-47. Newt, you paying attention?
The photos come via La Piedrita, a "radical group" based in the similarly named Caracas slum La Piedrita de 23 de Enero according to Fox Latino.
The group held a rally on Democracy Day, of all holidays, that culminated with the school kids aged three to seven waving assault rifles in front of the religious mural. (Who knew Jesus was an AK guy? We would have had him pegged as more of an Uzi fan.)
The photos have touched off a firestorm since the group posted them to Twitter and Facebook earlier this week, with Chavez's political enemies seizing on the imagery to attack him.
"Instead of guns, these children should have a computer, a book, a bat, a ball a glove or a musical instrument," opposition candidate Pablo Pérez tells Fox Latino.
To be fair to Chavez, even his government has distanced itself from the queasy suggestion of child soldiers with a top minister calling the pics "abominable and morally unacceptable."
Here are the most loco photos the group took, via Fox Latino and La Piedrita's Twitter feed:
And here's the magnificent mural of Jesus and Mary packing some serious firepower:
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