During the Summit of the Americas, President Barack Obama shook the hand of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez with a congeniality commonly associated with a class reunion. Since then, Chavez:

• Was one of the first foreign leaders to congratulate Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on the occasion of his victory in Iran’s disputed election.

Manuel Zelaya admires Hugo Chavez. He intended to install in Honduras what Chavez has installed in Venezuela—the rule of the strong man, a jefe who manipulates institutions to expand and prolong his power while crushing dissent. Zelaya planned to hold a so-called plebiscite to allow him to extend his tenure as president. The Honduras supreme court ruled the vote (widely expected to be rigged) unconstitutional. Zelaya ignored the decision, whereupon the military arrested him and sent him packing—and installed the leader of the Honduran congress (a member of Zelaya’s party) in his stead. Elections will occur later this year as scheduled.

During an April meeting of leaders from various countries in the Americas, President Barack Obama warmly, and very visibly, shook the hand of Hugo Chavez, Venezuela’s supremo for life, or for as long as he wants to be. Chavez gave Obama a book of anti-U.S. rants. The White House cautioned the administration did not expect gestures such as handshakes to change Chavez’s hostile attitudes and behavior. Nevertheless, critics argued that the high-profile nature of the Obama-Chavez exchange elevated Chavez’s international image.

Photographs of President Barack Obama shaking hands—and trading smiles—with Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez have generated considerable ire. The meeting occurred during a summit of leaders from the countries of the Western Hemisphere and could not have been avoided. Publicly to have snubbed Chavez merely would have enhanced the jefe’s notoriety and elevated his stature.

Several U.S. presidents met with leaders of the Soviet Union. Richard Nixon hit it off with Leonid Brezhnev. After the Red Army invaded Afghanistan, Jimmy Carter complained Brezhnev lied to him. After a rocky start, Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev formed a relationship that benefitted both of their countries. George W. Bush gazed into Vladimir Putin’s soul.