VP: Chávez ‘Conscious’

Will Venezuela get to celebrate the New Year? Hugo Chávez is “conscious” but remains in a “delicate and complex situation” after complications from cancer surgery, according to Venezuelan Vice President Nicolas Maduro. Maduro said he has seen Chávez twice in the past two days, and insisted the president’s health is not failing. Chávez, 58, underwent his fourth surgery in Cuba on Dec. 11 for cancer. He was reelected to a fourth term in October, but it’s unclear if he will be well enough to attend his swearing-in ceremony for the new term on Jan. 10.