SACRAMENTO - A new television ad in favor of the school voucher initiative claims opponent Gov. Gray Davis ''sold out our children'' for teachers' union campaign donations.
Davis' top political aide said the ad is the desperate act of a ''classic poor loser'' who knows Proposition 38 will be defeated on Nov. 7.
Proposition 38 would give parents a $4,000 voucher to send their children to private schools. It is sponsored by Redwood City millionaire Tim Draper and opposed by Davis and nearly every major school, business, community and labor group.
It is the second time that Proposition 38 backers have used the Democratic governor's words criticizing California schools in their television ads.
The first ran in July and early August and used a video clip from Davis' January 2000 State of the State address to the Legislature, prompting Davis to demand that stations pull the ad.
The new ad started running statewide last Friday night, pro-38 spokesman Chris Bertelli said Monday.
It refers to the same Davis words: ''But, to those who say we've done enough for now: let me remind you that by all accounts, California's students still rank at the bottom of the 50 states.''
However, it goes further and says ''Gray Davis sold out our children, receiving over a million dollars from union bosses who block reforms that will save our public schools.''
Davis has received several million dollars from school-related unions, particularly the California Teachers Association.
The ad also refers to the budget deal reached last spring by Davis and lawmakers to give schools an additional $1.8 billion from the surplus, prompting the CTA to drop its proposed initiative to raise taxes to increase school funding. Many districts used that money for teacher raises.
''This is a governor who will sell anything,'' Bertelli said.
The school unions are leading opponents to Proposition 38. Of the $1.1 million reported raised by opponents through June 30, CTA gave $487,885, and the California Federation of Teachers and the California School Employees Association each gave $250,000.
Draper loaned his campaign $3.6 million of the $3.8 million it had raised through June 30, the latest reporting period. Total spending for the initiative is likely to exceed $40 million.
Davis political adviser Garry South said the ad sounds like desperation.
''Tim Draper is now acutely aware that this turkey he put on the ballot is going to get its head chopped off by voters come November,'' South said. ''So as a classic poor loser, he's obviously decided to lash out at everybody who's pointed out the deceptive and potentially destructive nature of his own brainchild, starting with the governor.''
Anti-38 spokesman Jon Lensner noted that the ad ''does not talk about what's really in Proposition 38.'' The ad never mentions the word vouchers.
He said the Anti-38 campaign is planning to release its own new ads ''in the next couple of days.''
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On the Net: Read the initiative at http://www.ss.ca.gov
The two campaigns are at http://www.38yes.com
http://www.NoVouchers2000.com