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Obama Boosted by Nevada Ruling

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January 17, 2008 2:38 PM

ABC News' Sunlen Miller, David Chalian, and Teddy Davis Report: Sen. Barack Obama's, D-Ill., presidential campaign received good news on Thursday when a federal judge ruled that the Nevada Democratic Party can go forward with nine at-large precincts on the Vegas strip.

Supporters of Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., had challenged the at-large districts in court claiming that it was unfair for shift workers on the Strip to be able to caucus at their workplaces when similar provisions have not been made in other parts of the state.

The decision is expected to help Obama in Saturday's Nevada caucuses because the Culinary Workers -- a union which has endorsed Obama -- represents the casino workers.

Obama reacted to the ruling following a round table discussion in San Francisco, Calif.

"I'll be honest with you," said Obama. "We had nothing to do with setting up these rules. We simply were planning to win under the rules that had been set up. Some of the people who set up the rules apparently didn't think we'd be as competitive as we were and tried to change them last minute."

"But you know," he added, "I think the judge was clear that you can't change the rules six days before the caucus and that any alteration would have disenfranchised maids, dishwashers, bellhops who work on the strip, so just in terms of politics, we are confident of our organization on the ground. But in terms of policy, I think it was the right decision to make sure that as many people in the caucuses participate as possible."

Clinton spokesman Jay Carson reacted to the ruling by noting that the former first lady's campaign was not a party to the lawsuit. He also reaffirmed Clinton's belief that it is unfair for shift workers on the Strip to have access to an at-large precinct while shift workers elsewhere in the state do not.

"While we were not involved in this lawsuit, and have always said that we would play by the rules that we're given, it has always been our hope that every Nevadan should have equal access and opportunity to participate in the caucus," said a statement from Clinton spokesman Jay Carson.

"Make no mistake," he continued, "the current system that prohibits some shift workers from being able to participate, while allowing others to do so, would seem to benefit other campaigns. More importantly it is unfair. We also are concerned with recent news reports about voter intimidation tactics that would further discourage some Nevadans from participating on Saturday. Our strategy remains the same -- we want as many people as possible to participate in the caucus, and we are going to reach out to as many Nevadans as possible in an effort to do as well as possible on Saturday."

According to Bill Buck, a consultant to the Nevada Democratic Party, somewhere between 4-6.5 percent of the total delegates at stake in Saturday's caucuses will come from the at-large precincts. The Nevada Democratic Party estimates that there will be 40,000 caucus attendees statewide and that 10 percent of the attendees (4,000) will come from the at-large precincts.

Nevada Democrats estimate that there will be 50,000-100,000 shift workers on the Vegas strip during the time of the Nevada caucuses who would be eligible to participate in the at-large precincts.

The Nevada Democratic Party estimates that the nine ballrooms being used as at-large caucus sites can only hold a combined total of 20,000 people from the standpoint of fire martial caps. If turnout exceeds cap in one room, another one of the nine ballrooms will be used as a spillover room.

It is unclear at this time what will happen if all nine ballrooms exceed capacity.

January 17, 2008 in Kucinich, Dennis | Permalink | User Comments (66)

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I now see Miss Clinton as Bush-lite. Hopefully Obama can defeat her.

Posted by: yo-yo | Jan 17, 2008 4:34:05 PM

YES!!!! One win for the honest folks!

Posted by: Emeril Franks | Jan 17, 2008 4:34:27 PM

angie,

You are correct about the fact that voters are not being denied the 'Right to Vote' BUT the point is that if you make it difficult for people to vote, i.e., you force them to take a day off from work (which many low income people do not have the luxury to do) to travel to their respective districts to caucus, you are effectively denying them the 'Ability to Vote.'

Yes, every American has the Right to Vote but depending on their circumstances may not have the Ability to Vote that day.

Posted by: Joe | Jan 17, 2008 4:41:19 PM

the rules were made in march 07 by the democratic party leaders (not obama), and since then hrc didnt complain, now obama gets the endorsement of the culinary workers (a huge endorsement) and all of a sudden there is a problem, yeah theres only a problem when the hrc camp dont have their way!

Posted by: jacobs | Jan 17, 2008 4:41:21 PM

the rules were made in march 07 by the democratic party leaders (not obama), and since then hrc didnt complain, now obama gets the endorsement of the culinary workers (a huge endorsement) and all of a sudden there is a problem, yeah theres only a problem when the hrc camp dont have their way!

Posted by: jacobs | Jan 17, 2008 4:41:55 PM

Obama wins Neveda with 60% of the votes.

What will the Clintons think of next?

Posted by: Boyddollar | Jan 17, 2008 4:44:51 PM

I am neither a Clinton supporter nor an Obama supporter (I liked Richardson until he got out), so I hope I can look at this situation objectively. And objectively, the Clintonites are very much in the wrong here. Yes, Obama benefits, but it was NOT, in fact, his doing, as so many people here are claiming. The state Democratic party created these precincts last summer, and no one on Clinton's team objected to it when she was way ahead of the pack and many folks thought the primaries & caucuses would just be going through the motions and Obama might be, at most, an interesting and attractive "also ran".

Secondly, Obama's second-place finish in New Hampshire almost cost him the Culinary Workers Union's endorsement, which had been scheduled to be announced the following day. If the union had, in fact, withdrawn its support of him after his NH results, does anyone really believe that this teachers union that filed the suit this week would still have done so? No. It has nothing to do, on their part, with fairness, and everything to do with fear.

Fairness is on the side of the casino workers, who, unlike the great majority of people in most places, have to work on Saturdays. Give BOTH Nevada parties credit for scheduling their caucuses on a weekend, so at least the people who often can't vote because of Monday-through-Friday work schedules would have the chance to be involved in the process. But ensuring those people's enfranchisement shouldn't be traded for disenfranchising Saturday workers. The parties, and the judge, did exactly the right thing in ensuring that the greatest number of people possible had an opportunity to participate.

Posted by: Davy G. | Jan 17, 2008 4:45:29 PM

Give it up Clinton. Take your red face and retire. It is all the way for Obama now and rightly so. America has to have someone who will unite us or we will not make it. The Clintons would only continue the downward spiral of Washington rancor.

Posted by: rockychance | Jan 17, 2008 4:46:14 PM

ALEX, you bring up an interesting point not really considered before. OK, so maybe some illegals will vote but not nearly as many citizens who wouldn't have been allowed to vote if Bill had his way! All the more reason that former Lawyers like Clinton should have done something about the rules way before a week out from the caucuses after the union supported Obama and not the Clinton camp, as initially expected. If they can't even get something as simple as this straight, and didn't read tne National security document fully before voting for teh Iraq war then I have to ask, is Hillary ready to be President. Apparently not, and certainly Bill should be staying out of it; this is not his unconstituitonal third term as many of their supporters seem to indicate from their comments.

Posted by: Dennis | Jan 17, 2008 4:47:33 PM

The provisions for voting at the "at large" caucus sites were agreed on by the Democratic Party (NV and National) in March 2007 (10 months ago). Nobody complained. A week ago the culinary workers' union endorsed Obama, then suddenly the teachers' union files a lawsuit to stop them and Bill Clinton complains about "unfairness". Not a coincidence.

Posted by: D | Jan 17, 2008 4:48:26 PM

I agree, D.

These guys (Clinton camp) know exactly what they are doing. This is just like the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth did for Bush.

I don't buy their lies.

Posted by: Joe | Jan 17, 2008 4:52:06 PM

most of you are very intelligent people you see this for what it is desperation on the part of the clinton camp you also have noticed that so far obama has not been slinging any "crap" only fighting back when the clinton campaign war machine attacks him. go barrack go

Posted by: buckbuick1 | Jan 17, 2008 4:58:31 PM

Let's be honest. Both Obama and Clinton are savvy politicians. Whether or not Hilary had anything to do with this is besides the point. If Union endorsed Hilary, Obama (or its surrogates) would have filed the suit anyway. It's politics. If you all ACTUALLY think Obama is above the fray when it comes to this election, then God help this country.

Whether or not this is fair, that's up to the courts. At this point, it says "fair." So let's leave it at that. Personally, this country is a one person - one vote system. So by making it easier for certain people to vote compared to other groups is against the intent of the framers.

Posted by: Sean | Jan 17, 2008 4:59:02 PM

I wondeer if Bill is realizing how much of his own credibility he is burning right now?

Posted by: Louis | Jan 17, 2008 5:03:40 PM

Y-E-S !!!!! I love it - I love it - I love it
Being a foreigner I don't get to vote but I really don't like Hillary, she sounds fake to me, I don't trust her

Posted by: Valerie | Jan 17, 2008 5:07:01 PM

Hill's continues bragging about her experience will be her ultimate downfall as she tries to distort Barack's. Time will come when she will be confronted with her lies and would appear like a broken record repeating the lies endlessly. If the voters can just see the comparative legislative records of them, Barack will win hands down. Her performance would be amateur-like compared to Barack's visionary and statesman. Even her longer tenure in the
Senate will show the voters that all she did was to hog for spotlight with little substance to back up her experience, except her drinking challenge to male colleagues in former Soviet states in Asia. Presenting people she've helped along is in the tradition of Tammany Hall politicians, perhaps she should be running as mayor of the city instead of US president. She has a parochial mentality and have remained so with her short vision but relying heavily on advisers, even on her own personal appearance. With that kind of personality, she is not fit to run a country and the voters should not entrust it to someone with false experience and a track record of lying.

Posted by: wilson | Jan 17, 2008 5:09:23 PM

You mean there are Democrats that were trying to suppress votes, Oh Golly, and I thought only republicans did that. *sarcasm*

Posted by: | Jan 17, 2008 5:12:40 PM

Absolutely delighted that Hillary didn't get her way.

Posted by: Kate | Jan 17, 2008 5:13:16 PM

Their were enough scandals during Clinton's two terms as President do we need more of the same.

1. Lies
2. Sex Fiend
3. Womanizing
4. No Morals waste land
5. Ran Executive Office based of Polls
6. Sold the Lincoln bedroom for highest to bidder
7. Impeached
8. Smoked, but do not inhale
9. White Night in shining Armor for Blacks?
10. NAFTA, peace dividend base closure
11. CHINA, MFN, WTO

Posted by: Boyddollar | Jan 17, 2008 5:13:48 PM

Wait a minute people. They are only endorsing him because of race, and especially because of gender. Don't give me that crap! It's really pathetic the way you bash Hillary. I wonder what you all would do if it was your wife, girlfriend, and especially your mother!

Posted by: Marge | Jan 17, 2008 5:20:12 PM

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