President Hugo Chavez defended his decision yesterday to send troops and tanks to confront a massive opposition march that prompted his brief ouster, insisting he was trying to prevent a blood bath and a coup.

Chavez said he activated an emergency plan authorizing the use of military force because police and national guardsmen were overwhelmed trying to prevent opposition marchers from clashing with government supporters on April 11.

Venezuelan generals have said they refused to use force against unarmed civilians. But at least 17 people were killed during the demonstrations that day, and several investigations are under way to determine who is to blame.

ãIt was an explosion in the making, and I was obligated to make a decision,ä Chavez said during his weekly radio show.

After the bloodshed, Chavez was deposed by his military high command ÷ whose leaders said they turned against Chavez because of the civilian deaths ÷ only to be swept back to power two days later by loyalist troops and thousands of civilian protesters.

Chavez spoke after Venezuelan media released a tape recording in which he is heard ordering the activation of Plan Avila, which authorizes the use of military force during state security emergencies.

Sen. Zell Miller of Georgia wowed the National Rifle Association as a Democrat who wants more guns and chastised his own party for failing to recognize the social and political reach of gun issues.

ãThere is nowhere Iâd rather be tonight than right here with you, on the picket line of freedomâs defense,ä Miller told more than 2,000 NRA members in a speech at Saturday nightâs banquet.

Only about half the crowd at the NRAâs 131st annual meeting at the Reno Hilton hotel-casino stood when Miller was introduced as the first Democrat to give a keynote address to the gun rights group in more than a decade.

But nearly all rose to give a 30-second standing ovation by the time the popular former two-term governor finished his speech touting the NRAâs 4.2 million members as the epitome of ãmainstream America.ä

ãLike many of you, Iâve got more guns than I need, but not as many as I want,ä Miller said.

ãNow that may sound a bit confusing to some ÷ a Democrat wanting more guns,ä he said, explaining heâs a life member of the NRA with an A-plus voting record from the group, ãAnd Iâm darned proud of it.ä

Miller echoed the words of NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre, who told more than 4,000 delegates at the annual meeting Saturday afternoon, ãYou are why Al Gore isnât in the White House.ä

Miller said Gore lost partly because Democratic strategists listened to bad advice from pollsters who claimed voters favor gun control. He said Goreâs stands on gun rights cost the former vice president key southern states, including Arkansas, West Virginia and Tennessee.

The Mesa City Council plans to vote today on whether to bring a $350 million stadium for the Arizona Cardinals to a neighborhood where resident reactions are mixed.

The most vocal residential group has threatened a referendum to block the stadium from being built near the 2-square-mile area bounded by Loops 101 and 202.

Others also voice opposition but are negotiating with the city for amenities such as more landscaping, sound walls or ensuring streets are cordoned off during game days. Some welcome the stadium idea.