Oil wealth has been central to the domestic and regional policies of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez. His allies in the hemisphere often receive generous promises of assistance, and his internal programs depend heavily on the earnings of the state oil company, Petroleos de Venezuela. Now, with a precipitous drop in oil prices, declining petroleum output, and a growing opposition to his February 15 referendum--which would allow the president to seek indefinite reelection--Chavez's Venezuela faces a dramatically different fiscal and political situation.

Please join us as a panel of distinguished experts discusses the future of the Venezuelan political economy and what it means for the new U.S. administration's policy toward the region.