Barbara Walters: Hugo Chavez 'Charismatic' and Does 'Positive Things'

According to Barbara Walters’ set of rules, Venezuela's socialist anti-American dictator Hugo Chavez does "positive things." Promoting her annual special "The Ten Most Fascinating People" on the December 5 edition of "The View," Walters discussed one of her top ten, Hugo Chavez. Walters, who recently gave a puffy interview to the anti-American zealot, noted his recent setback exclaiming she "was amazed that he...didn’t get to be president for life" and "he’s a charismatic character."

Joy Behar inquired if he’s "still fascinating even though he didn’t win the election." Walters quickly answered "yeah."

When Walters allowed the co-hosts to guess who her secret number one is, Sherri Shepherd guessed Britney Spears. Walters refuted it claiming "we try to have people that do positive things."

The transcript is below.

WALTERS: Hugo Chavez, I was amazed that he, that he didn’t get to be president for life. I thought he was going to just bring in loads and loads of people. The fact that he, anyway, neither here nor there.

BEHAR: Is he still fascinating even though he didn’t win the election?

WALTERS: Yeah.

BEHAR: You think so?

WALTERS: He’s a charismatic character, he-

BEHAR: He’s got a little bit of time til tomorrow then he’s not.

[...]

WALTERS: Okay who do you think it should be?

GOLDBERG: Is it of the group or is it-

WALTERS: It’s a different person.

SHEPHERD: Well, what’s the qualifications that makes them the most fascinating, that we could-

WALTERS: Well, let’s not get into that.

SHEPHERD: Okay, well, Britney Spears has been fascinating.

WALTERS: Well, no we try to have people that do positive things.

SHEPHERD: Oh, so positive. Well, what did, what did "Posh" do?

GOLDBERG: Well, here’s the-yeah I want to know who-what happened? How did they become the most fascinating?

WALTERS: Well, I’ll tell you- I would like to tell you that we have this huge staff and that we do focus groups all over the country. Actually it’s Bill Geddy, Bradlyn Rosa, me and a couple of others. And we think, well who do you like? Because we like to have a businessman, we like to have a politician, we like to have a movie star. Who’s hot? Who’s the biggest? And that’s what- now Britney would have been wonderful, but then, you know, it would have been Britney, or Paris, or Lindsay.