Which Way, L.A.?

Passing the Buck on the Costs of Illegal Immigration

The Bush administration says security at America's borders has been improved, so it wants to cut federal assistance for housing and feeding illegal immigrants. Congress has voted to give the states just $388 million to help pay the costs of jailing illegal immigrants suspected of committing crimes. But that figure must cover all 50 states, when California alone needs almost twice that much, and LA Sheriff Lee Baca says that's just a fraction of what he needs to jail suspected criminals that cross the border because the federal government's not doing its job. So, what happened to Arnold Schwarzenegger, who promised to go from being the Terminator to the "Collectinator" to get California's "fair share" of federal funds. We hear more from Sheriff Lee Baca and Tim Ransdell of the California Institute for Federal Policy Research. Making News: County Supervisors Vote to Close King-Drew Trauma Center LA County Supervisors held another marathon hearing today. Then, as expected, they closed the trauma center at King-Drew Medical Center in South Los Angeles, promising to reassess re-opening it in the future. Trauma patients will be diverted to three nearby hospitals. Charles Ornstein, who monitored the action for the Los Angeles Times, says although no one is happy at the result, it's hoped that the move will help keep the hospital itself open. Reporter's Notebook: Judge Refuses to Intervene in San Diego Mayor's Race In San Diego, the principle that "all votes cast should be counted" has run up against the resolve that "all the rules should be followed." That means that Mayor Dick Murphy has been re-elected by about 2200 votes. There may be more write-in ballots than that for Councilwoman Donna Frye, but while many voters put her name on the line, they neglected to ink in the "bubbles" next to her name, as we hear from Greg Moran of the San Diego Union Tribune.