GOVERNOR TRYING TO KILL PROP. 66 WITH LATE TV ADS

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is putting $1 million and his movie star
mug behind a last-ditch effort to defeat Proposition 66, a reform of
California's "three strikes, you're out" law that has been widely
favored in the polls.

Schwarzenegger will appear in two television ads slated to begin
airing today, funded by the California Recovery Team, his main
campaign fundraising arm for a number of initiatives. That includes
his balanced budget measure in the spring and his campaign against a
gambling measure on next Tuesday's ballot.

Proposition 66 would soften the toughest sentencing law in the nation,
changing it to require a defendant to be convicted of a violent or
serious felony on a "third strike" to become eligible for a
25-year-to-life prison term. Right now, California is the only state
that allows defendants to receive those harsh life terms for a
non-violent "third strike" such as petty theft or drug possession.

The most recent Field Poll showed that voters overwhelmingly support
the change, with 65 percent in favor and 18 percent saying they
planned to vote "no." In addition, until now, supporters of the
measure have far outpaced opponents in fundraising. Indeed, wealthy
Proposition 66 supporters George Soros and John Sperling responded to
the governor Tuesday by contributing another $700,000 to the Yes on 66
campaign.

Schwarzenegger's infusion of cash, as well as a surge of spending by
the state's powerful prison guards' union, is meant to be a late push
to change voters' minds. But even the governor's spokesman conceded
Tuesday that it "very well could be too little, too late."

Opponents of the measure, including all of the state's district
attorneys, say more than 20,000 violent criminals could be released
from prison if the law passes. Supporters say prosecutors are using
scare tactics, arguing that about 4,000 convicts would be released or
resentenced.