Hollywood producer and former "All in the Family" star Rob Reiner has been battling opposition from conservatives ever since he first proposed a special state-funded program to focus on the needs of infants and toddlers.

Reiner sponsored Proposition 10 back in 1998, a successful initiative that imposed a 50-cent per pack tax on cigarettes to fund 58 county commissions empowered to set up programs for young children. He did so after having studied brain research that he said opened his eyes to the importance of nurturing children in their earliest years when much of their brain development takes place.

Even after the ensuing First Five programs were well established, conservatives in the Legislature regularly advocated that the Legislature raid their funds as a way of raising revenue without new taxes.

Those foes of Proposition 10 got their way in budget negotiations earlier this year, and Proposition 1D was placed on the ballot to divert money away from Reiner's First Five commissions. Reiner contributed to the campaign to defeat the measure.

When Tuesday's votes were counted, not only did Proposition 1D fail by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, but the conservative heartland of Orange County rejected it by a bigger margin (3-to-1) than any county in the state.