Now, labor unions including the AFL-CIO are lodging a complaint with the Federal Election Commission and urging it to rule that Wal-Mart acted illegally by telling store managers that an Obama administration and Democratic Congress would work against the interests of Wal-Mart employees. According to the report, managers were summoned to compulsory meetings where they were told that the planned Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) would mean higher union dues, compulsory industrial action and potential lay-offs as labor costs rise.

It would be a mistake to preempt the outcome of the FEC investigation, but if the allegations are true it would have serious implications for the corporate image of the world's largest commercial organization. Telling employees how to vote is tantamount to coercion as well as illegal express advocacy, and Common Cause will fight any attempts to influence the outcome of elections by anything other than free and fair campaigning.

Of course, we remain nonpartisan; free and fair elections for the American people are -- or should be -- a universal goal, and we'll work with the next President of the United States to achieve it.  For the meantime, though, let's make sure that this election year is one characterized by honest practices and a fair chance for all candidates.