Reiner resigns

This morning, Rob Reiner resigned as chair of the California Children and Families Commission. Reiner has served as chair of the commission since it began in 1999. He spoke with Gov. Schwarzenegger over the weekend and wrote this in his letter of resignation: "We agreed that we cannot let personal political attacks get in the way of doing the very best we can for California's children. For seven years I have volunteered as the chairperson of First 5 California, and I am proud of all that we have accomplished. We have touched the lives of over 3.4 million children across the state, from providing health insurance to preschool to parent education information to prenatal services. I applaud your appointment of Hector Ramirez as First 5's new chairperson, and I remain as committed today as I have ever been to improving the welfare of California's children." Reiner has come under attack in recent weeks for his role as the chief proponent of Prop. 82, which would create universal preschool in California, and simultaneously serving as chair of the commission, which spent $23 million promoting preschool in an ad campaign several months ago. Schwarzenegger only had kind words for Reiner in the press release. "Rob Reiner has always put California's kids first and I thank him for the great work he has done over the last seven years," said Governor Schwarzenegger. "Because of Rob's efforts, California has become a national leader in providing early childhood health and education services for our youngest children and their families." Reiner will be replaced by Hector Ramirez, another Democrat.