Actor-Director Rob Reiner put Proposition 10 on the ballot eight years ago and voters agreed to tax cigarettes 50-- a pack, raising $114 a year for young children. Now he's back with Prop 82 on the June ballot. It would raise $2.4 billion a year so that 4 year-olds could be prepared for kindergarten. Reiner, who has run into political problems, says his opponents are attacking him so they don't have to debate the merits of the proposition. His First-5 California is the group that helps spend the money from Prop 10, and which Reiner heads by appointment of the Governor. How many kids go to pre-school already? Does it help them learn basic skills later on? Who would benefit most from Prop 82? We hear a debate.
- Making News: Gang Member Describes Killing Enemies
Today is Day Two in the trial of the Aryan Brotherhood, a prison gang that federal prosecutors call so vicious it can only be stopped by capital punishment for its leaders. In Santa Ana, the first witness said he committed murder to show that he wasn't "squeamish." William Lobdell is following what is expected to be a nine-month trial for the LA Times.
Lobdell's article on beginning of Aryan Brotherhood trial
Proposition 82: Pre-School Education
Prop 10: State and County Early Childhood Development, Tobacco Surtax
First 5 California Children and Families Commission
Wildemuth's article on audit ordered for Reiner's commission