It’s getting close to dark in Chicago. The folks are scattering to a variety of dinners and meetings. There are still phone calls going back and forth between the principals here to see if a deal can be struck. Like I’ve said from the start, all these guys–and this is, after all, guys doing the dealing–are union bargainers who are used to the clock running down to a minute before the strike deadline, when a deal gets done to avert a strike. So, anything is possible.

But, there is a tough haul to be done here. The Change To Win coalition has maintained that there needs to be a leadership change–that isn’t just about the presidency but also certainly about the secretary-treasurer position. John Sweeney may be willing to step aside–but he’d also need to be able to convince Rich Trumka to step down also…or have enough of his allies to be willing to make that plea and for Trumka to agree.

And, then, get everyone on board about who the consensus candidate is. Seems like a lot to do in less than 24 hours. The UFCW board is meeting in the morning to decide whether to walk away from the convention and there is a press conference scheduled by the coalition in the afternoon, presumably to announce who’s walking away from the convention.

My question is: if one or more unions besides SEIU walks away from the convention–raising the specter of disaffiliation to come–how is the financial impact addressed openly with the delegates. I imagine that Sweeney would not want the question debated on the floor how the Federation hopes to operate with a significant reduction in per capita (and that’s above and beyond SEIU’s $10 million which is pretty certain not to be there).

Where will the next round of budget cuts come? Is there a plan to try to raise the per capita beyond the current level (and above and beyond the vote to make the temporary 8 cents assessment a permnanent part of the per capita amount)? If there is a plan (and, as a delegate, wouldn’t you want to walk away from the convention being informed about the plan), I think that’s going to be a very hard sell–there are unions that are supporting Sweeney for re-election that will not look kindly at the Federation’s hand trying to reach deeper into the affiliates’ pockets.