Is Pre-school Education Being Oversold?

In his State of the Union speech, President Obama made a proposal that hasn't been tried since the Nixon Administration: federally funded assistance for pre-school education. The President says universal pre-school education will boost high-school graduation, while reducing teen-pregnancy and violent crime. He's using the red states of Georgia and Oklahoma to demonstrate that it's working. But critics say benefits fade away quickly and don't work long enough. Would the program really be "universal" if it's aimed at the poor with means testing to filter out kids in upper- and middle-income families? State and local governments account for most education spending. Would a preschool program help Washington level the playing field in an era of growing inequality?