CHAVEZ GETS THE BOOT

I would have thought this would have been done some time ago.

The U.S. State Department has ordered a dozen officials at the Venezuelan consulate in Houston to leave the country after the South American government moved its offices in the city before receiving permission.

The officials have until Sunday to leave the United States, a State Department official told the Houston Chronicle for its Saturday editions.

The newspaper reported that the consular office was locked on Friday and a notice taped in the window said it would remain closed until further notice for reasons "beyond our control." A similar notice was posted on the consulate Web site on Saturday.