ABC has more:

With the stated purpose of ensuring voting participation by casino employees in the Jan. 19 Nevada caucuses, the Nevada Democratic Party created nine at-large precincts designed for the "4,000 or more shift workers per site who could not otherwise take the time off to go to their home precincts."

....

But the lawsuit, filed by six Nevada Democrats and the Nevada State Education Association teachers' union -- whose deputy executive director, Debbie Cahill, is a member of Clinton’s Nevada Women’s Leadership Council  -- seeks to prevent those At-Large Districts from meeting in next Saturday's caucuses.

....

The lawsuit was filed by the firm Kummer, Kaempfer, Bonner, Renshaw, and Ferrario. Senior partners Michael Bonner and Christian Kaempfer have donated money to Clinton in the past, and Clinton ally and former Rep. James H. Bilbray, D-Nev., is an attorney at that firm.

The state party approved the at-large precincts at its Nevada State Democratic Party's State Central Committee meeting on March 31, 2007.

According to those minutes and attendance records of the obtained by ABC News, four plaintiffs now suing the state party to stop these "at-large" precincts from convening were in attendance: Clark Party Second Vice Chair Vicki Birkland and John Birkland, Party Third Vice Chair Dwayne Chesnut and Clark County Public Administrator John Cahill.

The "Delegation Selection Plan Review and Approval" including these "at-large" precincts was, according to minutes of the meeting reviewed by ABC News, "Passed unanimously." The plan was submitted to the Democratic National Committee for approval in August.

If these caucus sites are so-undemocratic, why did no one object before?  The caucus is being held on a Saturday, when most teachers are off work (as opposed to casino workers, who are busiest on Saturdays), so it is unclear why the teachers' union would feel so put-off by the arrangement.

When asked to comment, Hillary approved this voter suppression tactic by expliciting refusing to condemn it:

Her [Clinton's] allies are responsible for the lawsuit and her response this evening was to say, “I know about the lawsuit that has been filed and I hope that it can be resolved by the courts and by the state party because obviously we want as many people as possible to be able to participate that is the whole idea.”

Let the word go out -- Hillary has officially adopted the Karl Rove/Tom DeLay playbook: If a group of voters endorse your rival, do everything possible to keep them from voting.  Who thinks this lawsuit would have been filed if the Culinary Workers endorsed Clinton?

I thought Hillary would be better than this.  I thought wrong.

Update [2008-1-13 17:22:0 by existenz]: Many news outlets are starting to cover this story, although too few make the clear link between the Obama endorsement and subsequent voter suppression tactics by Hillary supporters.  Still, more of the story is getting out.

From the WaPo:

State Democratic officials, who had been expecting the suit, said they had worked with each presidential campaign since last spring to craft the process, including the casino precincts, to drum up the largest turnout possible.

"The time for comment or complaint has passed," the state party said in a statement after the suit was filed by the teachers' union and several individuals. ....  Culinary union officials dismiss the complaints as sour grapes from Clinton allies. "It's strange it's coming after our endorsement," D. Taylor, the secretary-treasurer, said of the suit.

Minutes from the meeting last March when the state Democratic committee approved the caucus process show that several of the parties to the suit were there and approved of the process.

Tens of thousands of casino employees will be disenfranchised if these caucus sites are shut down.  Even with caucus sites on the Strip, not everyone will get to vote:

At the Bellagio, executives estimate that between 4,000 and 5,000 employees will be working at caucus time. While they have been accommodating so far, executives say they cannot possibly let every worker take more than an hour-long break on Martin Luther King Day weekend, which will be extra busy.

"It's not perfect for us. We've got a business to maintain," said Gordon Absher, spokesman for MGM Mirage, which owns the Bellagio and three other casinos hosting caucuses.

If these sites are shut down, and employees have to drive home to find the caucus sites in their neighborhoods, how many do you think will participate?  How many would even be allowed to participate? Very few, which is exactly why this suit is being filed.

My father is a teacher, and a 30-year member of the California Teacher's Association.  I know for a fact that it is much easier for a teacher to find time on a Saturday to attend a caucus than an employee working at a casino on a busy holiday weekend.  This lawsuit has no merit, unless you a worried Clinton supporter.

[Update]: For those who think the casino employees are getting special treatment, there is an easy answer: file a lawsuit to open more caucus sites at hospitals, schools, or factories for other workers. Instead of making it harder for casino employees to vote, they should make it easier for everyone.

Which brings up the big question: why didn't the teacher's unions ask for more caucus sites for their members back in March of 2007, if this is such an big deal?  

The answer: because it wasn't an issue until the Culinary Workers endorsed Obama.