Michael

In the original story you posted about Antuna, you will see within your own story just how and through what mechanism the union will pressure members to skew the vote. Key:The union is the intercessor with the casino managers as to WHO goes to caucus.

You do show that Antuna kept maintaining that she was told she had to caucus for Obama or she wasn't going to be allowed to caucus

" When she told them she wasn't sure about caucusing for him [Obama], one rep took her registration form, indeed telling her that she couldn't participate Saturday if she wasn't supporting Obama ."

That's the crux of the issue...if you don't vote for Obama, you can't caucus. The union rep never backed off that stance in her encounter with Antuna.

Antuna trying to reregister as an independent itself does not in any way deny that Antuna stills agrees with Angers and DeFalco that the union rep still tried to coerce her. Antuna, in the Las Vegas Sun article, still maintains that the union rep said " she couldn't participate Saturday if she wasn't supporting Obama."

THE MECHAISM OF UNION CONTROL

The union may be able to determine who the casino managers let leave their shift to go caucus. The caucus takes up to 1-2 hours. Almost eveyone working there at that time frame is a member of the CWA. Not every worker can be allowed to caucus in that time frame....because the casino would just stop functioning.

So how do you actually get the time off to go caucus? Well the union intervenes with the employer, the casino, to let x number of persons to leave. It also seems the union could intervene in terms of who is allowed to go caucus.

Indeed from your original piece itself and the update it is clear just how the union is doing and in this case with Antuna backed off because it looked so bad.

"In fact, Antuna said the Culinary called her later to inform her the union had received her voter registration form, spoken with her supervisor and that she was clear to caucus during her shift on Saturday."

So indeed it does seems the union controls who get to caucus because it intercedes with the casino as to who will be allowed to leave their shift to go caucus. And in this case, cited by you yourself, they decided that tolerance for different choices was better than acting like like Tammany Hall bosses. But the very fact that they did verify her status with the casino manangers tells you exactly how the union can pressure its members. the casino wants to get along with the union, so they let the union choose who can caucus. So those who have signed pledges for Obama get to leave and those for the other 2 may not be allowed off their shift.

Let me make it clear that if the union had endorsed Hillary I think this would be happening for her...but they endorsed Obama.

Nor do I think that if the union had endorsed Hillary that you would be satisfied with the the UNION INVESTIGATING AND CLEARING ITSELF.