In political news, of which you’ve probably had more than enough already, the Culinary Union Local 226 is gearing up to play a big role in the 2008 Democratic caucus, reports the Los Angeles Times. The national party has pushed Nevada up near the front of the presidential calendar for the next election, and the betting is that it will produce a more acceptable candidate in national elections because Nevada is more representative than Iowa and New Hamshire which effectively winnows the field to two or three candidates.

Hmmm. That has always sounded like wishful thinking. The problem with say, John Kerry, wasn’t where he got an early lead. It was with most Democrats in most primaries who settled on him as the most electable. After the Howard Dean fiasco the party was looking for a veteran with sufficient gravitas to be electable. The unions fell into line and worked hard for Kerry but still couldn’t get him elected.

And the idea that a radically different candidate will emerge in 2008 is wrong. The paper’s only suggestion is that Nevada might give Bill Richardson a boost. Maybe. Sure he’s right on guns and issues like that but he’s spent tons of time in Washington and will tout his foreign policy experience if he runs (but watch for Republicans to trash his diplomacy in North Korea).

Then there is the money primary. If Hilary Clinton or anyone else arrives with an enormous war chest, the unions are going to feel a lot of pressure to get on board to make sure they have her IOU in their pocket. That’s the opposite of how the Culinary sees things but that’s how it’s going to work.

And there’s no evidence that the field is going to be more diverse because of the calendar change. The "front-loading" of the primary and caucus season will, however, make money more important than ever because candidates will need both organization and TV ads to come out of the early rounds looking viable.

And Maggie Carlton’s claim that the party needs to get someone in the working class doesn’t make sense. The place where Democrats need to win is in the suburbs in the West and the South and unions like the Culinary are the exception not the rule in those places. All in all, Nevada could get something out of this because candidates will have to play to local issues but the claim that a better candidate will emerge because of Nevada’s participation is hard to fathom.