When State Rep. David Leitch, former Journal Star reporter, Commercial National Bank vice president and strongly pro-business Republican, announced recently he would not run again, expressions of admiration came from Democrats.
Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth, D-Peoria, and Sen. Dave Koehler, D-Peoria, both cited Leitch for being a moderating voice and for his assistance with learning the ropes in Springfield when they were first elected.
When two former Republican governors spoke publicly urging Gov. Bruce Rauner to hold off on his “Turnaround Agenda” and get a state budget as soon as possible, they didn’t mince words. Jim Edgar said the state is in the worst financial condition in history. Jim Thompson repeated the warning.
Asked about that criticism, Leitch said, “They made an important statement. The governor’s first priority is to get the budget.”
However, Leitch said he agrees with Rauner’s insistence on improving the state’s business climate. The number of jobs in Illinois today is equal to the number in 1999, he said.
With 27 years in the Legislature, Leitch cited his weekly meetings with mental health agencies as a template for how government should work . . . not top down imposed by regulations but grassroots up starting with the problems of real people.
When the Cook County sheriff said his jail is the largest mental health hospital in the state, Leitch reiterated his call for improved psychiatric care. He recently sponsored successful legislation that allows colleges to inform parents when their children are having serious mental health issues.
“Mental health care is upside down. Our system is dictated by state and federal rules and funding streams imposed on local communities,” he said. “The best thing in Peoria is the Crisis Center and Jack Gilligan. We need to keep people out of emergency rooms and jails.”
Leitch was on the board at Heartland Clinic, a federally-funded health clinic for low-income people, and said he believes women should have access to a complete comprehensive range of contraceptive options. He was unaware of restrictions on access to contraception at the clinic (see Community Word “Contraceptive counseling by zip code,“ January 2015).
Leitch said state government used to work better when members of the Legislature had more power.
“Today, the four leaders and the governor run the show,” he said. “Individual members used to wield more power. We passed measures to benefit communities our size.”
The accumulation of power among the leaders has made it more difficult to come up with bipartisan solutions, he said.
“The governor is trying to make changes to improve the business climate in the state. I don’t agree with all the changes he’s proposing, but we need to get growth in the state again,” Leitch said.
He believes the governor is showing a willingness to compromise on right-to-work, prevailing wage and collective bargaining but is adamant about the need to reform workers comp.
“I’m frustrated people are getting hurt and at the same time we’ve got to do something to create a environment where people will want to invest in Illinois and create more jobs,” he said.
Among his achievements, Leitch cited legislation that made Illinois the first state in the country to routinely ask pregnant women to donate blood from their baby’s umbilical cord for stem cell research.