Culinary

A week that began with the Democratic presidential candidates sharing the Las Vegas spotlight with the AVN awards, ended with Nevadans supporting the candidates who had gained early footholds in the state and captured their respective party establishments. In between, we were treated to a rebuking of O.J. Simpson by Clark County Judge Jackie Glass; an invasion of national and international reporters trying to figure out how to make sense of Nevada politics; a media narrative dead set on accentuating racial and gender differences and refighting the Civil Rights movement; Democratic presidential candidates refusing to take the media’s bait and choosing to play nice (at least during Tuesday’s debate); a feisty and combative Bill Clinton taking on reporters, Barack Obama, and union bosses alike; a lawsuit that laid bear the animosity between traditional unions supporting Hillary Clinton and unions aligned with UNITE HERE! that disdain all things Clinton; a fiery John Edwards who attempted to stay relevant in a state that feels little guilt about ignoring poverty; accusations and counter-charges of dirty politics between the Obama and Clinton campaigns; and a state Democratic Party that did not believe its own hype and was thus, unprepared for so many caucus participants.

In sum, caucus week in the Silver State did not disappoint and in all likelihood established Nevada as the gateway for the battle for the west for the near future. But since we are talking about politics and at the end of the day, politics is about winning, what follows is my round-up of caucus week winners, losers, and those somewhere in between.

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The 2008 presidential caucuses are over and the Nevada political community can now return to some normalcy; unless it’s for a fundraiser, don’t expect to see the presidential candidates return anytime soon – though Nevada’s potential competitiveness in the general election will cause competition for our five electoral votes.

Now the focus goes back to state and local politics: Can Democrats beat Bob Beers or Joe Heck and capture control of the State Senate? Might Republicans make substantial gains in key State Assembly races?   Could Jon Porter lose his congressional seat to Rob Daskas? Will Jill Derby, fresh off rave reviews for the state Democratic Party’s performance in attracting 100,000 voters to participate in the caucuses, agree to a rematch against Dean Heller?  Are Nevada politicians as afraid of D. Taylor and Culinary as they were last week? And will Jim Gibbons rebound – as many Governors do after their first year or two in office – and win re-election in 2010?

In a few hours, Nevadans have an historic opportunity to enter the national political spotlight and potentially play a key role in the nomination of the next President of the United States.  Still, in the first caucus that could be truly relevant, there are no guarantees that a huge number of voters will turn out for today’s caucuses.

On the Democratic side, today’s caucus is being viewed as a tie-breaker between Barack Obama, who won Iowa, and Hillary Clinton, the winner in New Hampshire, as they compete for momentum critical February 5 primaries known as Super Tuesday.  The Nevada Caucus is less important for Republicans, who have virtually ignored the Silver State as they keep their eye on South Carolina, which also votes today.

Former President Bill Clinton lost his temper  today when a San Francisco TV reporter asked him about a teachers union lawsuit seeking to prevent Democrats from designating Las Vegas hotels as polling locations – a move that arguably benefits members Culinary. 

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees has sent nearly 100 staffers to Nevada to help Hillary Clinton, causing Culinary Workers Local 226 head D. Taylor – since last week a Barack Obama supporter – to complain the AFSCME might be violating some election laws. The Federal Election Commission allows unions to communicate only with their own members on union time, and AFSCME has about 3,000 members in Nevada. It’s hard to believe each staffer is spending their day talking to thirty people.

John Edwards’ second place finish in Iowa last night makes a Culinary endorsement in Nevada far less likely – if not impossible. Some Democratic insiders have suggested that Edwards’ only real chance to beat Hillary Clinton here was to secure the backing of Culinary.