At Large Precincts In Nevada

I've been following Jon Ralston's subscription-only coverage of the last-minute lawsuit against the concept of at-large precincts in the Nevada caucuses and I don't know how it will end.

When all the candidates (and their supporters in Nevada) weren't sure who'd get the endorsement of the Culinary Workers' union, no one objected to the creation of special at-large worksite precincts for them. Remember: MLK weekend is one of the busiest for Las Vegas and a lot of caucusing Culinary workers will be at their jobs on the strip.

But as soon as the Culinary Workers endorsed Barack Obama, opponents seem to have suddenly recognized that creating special precincts for a small group of Nevadans is undemocratic.

Further, the lawsuit seems to have brought real fissures between the Culinary Workers and other liberal interest groups in Nevada to the fore. The chairman of the Clark County Democratic Party called the head of the CW a "bully." Other unions are complaining about special treatment. Other Democrats are going to out of their way to claim that the Culinary Workers are less powerful than they claim.