Gov. Brown Begs for Prop. 30 Votes

Support slipping away for tax increase

With time running out and his odds growing longer, California Gov. Jerry Brown pleaded with voters Wednesday to support his $6 billion-a-year tax increase and warned of deep cuts unless residents send more money to Sacramento.

In sometimes uncharted remarks that included fleeting references to the bleak movie "Blade Runner" and Nobel Prize-winning author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Brown said residents face a stark choice with Proposition 30—invest in the future or sap its potential.

"Believe in California," the Democratic governor said at a forum organized by Town Hall Los Angeles, a civic group. With the additional investment from taxpayers, he said, "California will shine."