Rally Demands Davis Save Child Programs

Hundreds of people, many with youngsters in tow, rallied Monday to demand that Gov. Gray Davis spare child care programs from the state budget ax.

The protest at the Los Angeles Children’s Museum was over a Davis plan to save $108.8 million by eliminating a program that subsidizes child care for working parents who recently were on welfare. The budget problem requires sacrifices, said Steve Maviglio, a spokesman for Davis. “Unfortunately, the size of our shortfall is so large that even our most valuable programs have to be pared back,” he said.