Director Rob Reiner resigns from Calif. commission

[MsUSA]

SACRAMENTO, California (Reuters) - Actor-director Rob Reiner, accused of abusing his role as head of a California commission by spending state funds to promote a campaign to fund preschool, resigned from the job on Wednesday.

Reiner has headed the First 5 California Children and Families Commission, a state entity that provides services to young children, for seven years.

Legislators from both political parties said Reiner, an outspoken Democrat, improperly spent $23 million of commission funds to highlight preschool when he was promoting a referendum for the June 2006 ballot that would guarantee preschool for 4-year-olds.

"When you and I spoke over the weekend, we agreed we cannot let personal political attacks get in the way of doing the very best we can for California's children," Reiner said in a letter to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyid=2006-03-29T200505Z_01_N29387866_RTRUKOC_0_US-CALIFORNIA-REINER.xml&rpc=22

[Wickerman]

1. Hard to figure what it was he did wrong

Spent money promoting preschool so that he could get a referendum passed that would fund preschool. hmmm. What an evil bastard. Had he pocketed for his own good they would have made him king.

[Der Blaue Engel]

2. Yeah, I don't get it

:shrug: I guess I don't understand the rules.

[pacalo]

3. He deserves a medal.

[immoderate]

4. Knowing Reiner, this is a loss for CA

Well, I don't know him personally, but his reputation is impeccable. They can't do any better for the children of California. And since California is, in so many ways, an example to the states, this is a great loss.

--IMM

[matt819]

9. It's the thin end of the wedge

Okay, so right now all he's doing is promoting pre-school services and education. Certainly suspect, especially since Mr. Reiner is a dyed-in-the-wool liberal, and you know what that means. In any case, I would argue that this is relatively harmless. But what's the next step? He might advocate for full-day kindergarten. Whew! Education! Now that's damn risky among RW fundies. And, then, standardized tests notwithstanding, these damn west coast kids might actually become educated. They might actually, as they grow up, ask questions and wonder about the world around them. Can't have that, can we. So, when you ask about the risk to what Mr. Reiner is doing, you have to take the long view.

[jsamuel]

5. this is it - "state funds to promote a campaign to fund preschool"

state funds to promote a campaign to fund preschool

[Mythsaje]

6. He's such a meathead...

:evilgrin:

Too bad. it sounds like he was doing the right thing. Of course, that's his crime. If he was doing it all for himself, the Repugs would've lined up to support him. Well, if he'd had a (R) after his name, at least.

[melm00se]

7. from the wording

it looks like he spent $23 million on a marketing campaign while pushing for referendum.

that makes it appear that he was using government money, ear-marked for another purpose, for electioneering.

to put it another way:

that is 100 $40K teachers for 7 years

[Semi_subversive]

8. In the Ethics Training I'm required to take every two years

in my employment with the State of CA, they cover Stanson v. Mott. It's a CA Supreme Court ruling which says you can't use public funds in connection with ballot measure campaigns. The government is not supposed to take sides. He was in violation.