Chavez, in re-election bid, often cites plots

 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is running for re-election in October against state governor Henrique Capriles, and the leftist president has repeatedly warned that his opponents could try to provoke violence or destabilize the country if defeated.

 Chavez, who survived a brief coup in 2002, has previously claimed repeatedly during his 13-year presidency that his adversaries aim to overthrow him or even kill him.

 Opposition politicians have dismissed talk of plots by Chavez adversaries as hogwash. Opposition lawmaker Julio Borges said the latest accusation of a hidden plot in a crossword seems to be an attempt to distract from other issues …

 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is running for re-election in October against state governor Henrique Capriles, and the leftist president has repeatedly warned that his opponents could try to provoke violence or destabilize the country if defeated.

 Chavez, who survived a brief coup in 2002, has previously claimed repeatedly during his 13-year presidency that his adversaries aim to overthrow him or even kill him.

 Opposition politicians have dismissed talk of plots by Chavez adversaries as hogwash. Opposition lawmaker Julio Borges said the latest accusation of a hidden plot in a crossword seems to be an attempt to distract from other issues ahead of the Oct. 7 election.

 “This is another smoke screen,” he said.

 Chavez returned home Friday after 11 days of cancer treatment in Cuba, saying his latest round of radiation therapy was successful. He began the treatments in late March after an operation in February that he says removed a second tumor from his pelvic region. The first tumor was taken out in an operation last June.