When New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's blamed opponents of the Amazon tax incentive package for the company's decision to scrap its plans to move to New York City, he might have been leaving out a crucial piece of the story - and minimizing his own culpability in the process. To wit, the Daily News reported on Thursday that Cuomo and a group of labor unions met with Amazon earlier this week to try and salvage the deal. But when the company refused to relent on its opposition to unions being formed among its employees, and the employees tasked with building the new facilities it planned to inhabit, it put Cuomo and other pro-union politicians in a "tricky spot."

When one top Amazon official testified to the City Council a few weeks ago that the company wouldn't stay neutral on union bids by its New York staff, members of the council replied that this would be unacceptable. The two unions who had supported Amazon's bid - the Building and Construction Trades and the Service Employees International Union Local 32BJ - also threatened to withdraw their support.

As a result, Amazon balked. And according to once councilman, the union issue was the company's real breaking point, not the AOC-inspired opposition to the tax incentive plan.

"They buckled because we held firm on the values of New Yorkers - we told them that you cannot come to New York City and declare that you will crush the rights of workers to organize," said Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer, who represents the area where the headquarters would have been. "Amazon insisted and refused to change their ways and we said no deal. And they would rather leave and go elsewhere than allow workers who make $18 an hour to organize a union," Van Bramer said. While there had been outrage surrounding the $3 billion in subsidies the company was getting, Van Bramer said he thought the union issue was what made the deal "untenable" in the end.

The structuring of the Amazon deal was done in such a way that it bypassed the City Council, which was one factor that some said contributed to the tensions.

"Rather than addressing the legitimate concerns that have been raised by many New Yorkers, Amazon says you do it our way or not at all, we will not even consider the concerns of New Yorkers," said Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union spokeswoman Chelsea Connor. "That’s not what a responsible business would do."

Michael Gianaris, the state senator who led the charge in opposing the deal, hinted at the union issue during an interview with CNBC Thursday afternoon.

"They came in and told us they were a proudly anti-union company...they came in and said they would work with ICE to deport people...these are not the type of companies we should support,"

There you have it: A company that had promised to create 25,000 jobs with an average salary of $130,000 a year saw its plans upended because it wouldn't support - in principle - an $18-an-hour minimum wage.