33 Quotes by Mark Baldassare

There are real concerns in the general public about who is going to be left behind, and those concerns are particularly evident among African-Americans and Latinos. There's a sense that when students fail, you need to help them achieve.

The governor must still convince independents and moderates that he is as he seemed to be last year ... a figure in Sacramento who stood for solutions and an end to partisan bickering, who put the people's interests first.

The governor has a big challenge ahead of him.

The reasons for the special election and the reasons for the specific proposals the governor is endorsing are not something that are energizing the public right now or generating a lot of support.

The public's frustration with the state of education is palpable. They see lots of rhetoric but little progress.

The public is frustrated and disappointed with what they see as a lack of progress in improving the quality of education. Because the issue is so important to them, (voters) want to see officials at all levels engaged, even if they're not directly involved (in education).

Borrowing in the short term has become the way to resolve these impasses.

Essentially, all of these competing plans that were headed for the June ballot were very popular.

There's still a long way to go, but the governor is still looking to find the key to what will change public opinion. While his measures may not have moved in a negative direction, there's no sign that voters have any more inclination to support his package.