I often hear Americans whine that Hugo Chavez is a dictator,yet never hear them whine about China, Saudi etc?

Despite Chavez having won three consecutive free & fair elections (all monitored by international moderators, including from the USA), he is often referred to as a dictator. Yet the same people never whine about the real dictatorships/absolute monarchies in places China, Saudi Arabia etc. Why not? Is it ok to be a totalitarian state as long as you are a US ally, ie Saddam Hussein's Iraq during the 1980s?