Clinton Wins Casino Caucuses Her Supporters Opposed

Experience was often cited as a major reason voters liked Clinton, a curious response unless being married to the President is considered valuable .

Saturday, the much-ballyhooed Nevada caucuses for the Democratic Presidential nomination took place, and much of the preceding political ruckus and infighting turned out to be misplaced. The nine casinos which had been selected to host caucuses to ease voting difficulties for casino workers did their best to keep the process organized and simple, and despite a Culinary Workers' Union endorsement of Barack Obama, both the LasVegas Strip polling locations and the state as a whole went for Hillary Clinton.

There had been much debate over the new system used  to allow casino employees the opportunity to register their opinions in the caucuses by attempting to make the locations convenient to workers who were on-duty during the Saturday primary, much of it from Clinton supporters who proclaimed the plan would significantly favor Obama.

However, many of the hotel employees seemed to disregard the union's recommendation and sided with Clinton, who carried seven of the nine casino caucuses. Experience was often cited as a major reason voters liked Clinton, a curious response unless being married to the President is considered valuable in the way that being a state governor, or a longer time in the Senate, might be.

Interestingly, when questioned about the process of allowing employees at work a break to participate, senior vice president of MGM Mirage Alan Feldman said, "We thought it was a terrific opportunity to allow the employees to participate... We did have to put limits on it, though. If every single server in the buffet all said they wanted to go, clearly you'd have to say no to someone."

Who decided which workers would be permitted to leave and which would continue their duties was not clear, nor was the thinking that led to excluding some while benefitting others.

Clinton, whose representatives had approved the casino caucuses this summer when they were suggested, had recently had vocal supporters decry the process, and the state teachers' union sued unsucessfully to block the casinos from participating. Now that the results have returned favorably for her, Clinton can be expected to voice approval of the format; there has clearly been a pattern of behavior by the Clinton camp indicating that whatever method gives her victory is the one it will pursue, disregarding any disenfranchisement of opposition.