This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Tuesday, February 18th, 2014.

I'm Caleb Brown.

Venezuela government tolerance for differing opinions may be at an all-time low.

Opposition leaders are on the run as a country appears to be close to a breaking point.

Juan Carlos Adongo a policy analyst for Latin America at the Cato Institute comments.

As the situation rapidly deteriorates economically in Venezuela,

large such means of the population, especially the middle class, are fed up and

they are going into the streets to protest. We have seen protests before in Venezuela, large protests, but the way that the government

has repressed the protests taking place last week has only made things worse.

Three people died last week,

they were killed by armed groups

that are supporters of the government.

The government issue an arrest warrant against Leopoldo Lopez with the former mayor of

Chaco, which is a district of Karakas, is one of the most emblematic leaders of the opposition.

He just turned himself into the opposition. He just turning himself into the authorities today and this is only

going to make things worse as the population feels that there's no way out and they cannot they don't have

any other option by going to the streets and demand that there is a change in

government. So high inflation, otherwise also economic deterioration.

Hugo Chavez cracked down on opposition leaders at the time and presumably Maduro will continue to double down on that policy?

Indeed, President Maduro is more thuggish than Ugo Chavez. He's closely advised by the Cuban regime. He was actually

installing power, some people say, by the Cuban by the Castro brothers and the most real the most great threat that he has to his

whole on power is not the opposition it's not the people in the streets but

...