Shortly after former veteran legislator Susan Gerard was appointed Department of Health Services director last year, she was asked about her relationship with Sen. Barbara Leff, R-11, to whom she lost her Senate seat in a bitter 2002 campaign and recount election.
“Who?” Ms. Gerard asked.
“Senator Leff,” Arizona Capitol Times responded.
“Who?” Ms. Gerard repeated, but then answered.
“There’s no relationship with Senator Leff, to be honest with you,” she said. “We’ve never had a conversation, never had a correspondence.”
Earlier this month, the two women came face to face when the Senate Health Committee voted unanimously to forward Ms. Gerard’s nomination to the full Senate, which is charged with acting on all executive nominations.
On the Senate floor, Sens. Jack Harper, R-4, and Ron Gould, R-3, called for a rare roll call vote on the nomination and, with three other senators, voted against Ms. Gerard, a fellow Republican.
Mr. Harper, who said he attended the Health Committee meeting, said Ms. Leff, a member of the committee, offered Ms. Gerard a handshake after the meeting and was rebuffed.
But in an interview, Ms. Leff said, “I went up to her afterwards and I said ‘truce’ and put my hand out because we obviously had not been getting along well, and she put her hand out — obviously she wasn’t expecting me to say anything — and she smiled, and that was it. I don’t know what Harper was talking about. It should not be a story.”
The Senate on April 18 confirmed the nomination 24-5, with Health Committee Chairman Sen. Carolyn Allen, R-8, calling the roll call vote motion “an outrage.”
It was the second time in less than a year that Mr. Harper and Mr. Gould requested a roll call vote on an executive nomination. On May 12, 2005, they voted against the nomination of Velma Marie Pastor to the Tourism and Sports Authority board. The wife of Arizona Democrat Congressman Ed Pastor, Ms. Pastor’s nomination was approved 20-4.
“I am grateful to all the senators who supported me, especially Senator Leff,” Ms. Gerard said. “I am looking forward to working with all members of the Legislature…”
Sens. Dean Martin, R-6, Thayer Verschoor, R-22, and Linda Gray, R-10, voted against Ms. Gerard. Ms. Gray later explained that her no vote stemmed from comments she said Ms. Gerard made as a senator against her bill dealing with psychotropic drug therapy for problem school children.
“When I asked her to support the Ritalin bill, her comment was ‘No, people in my district like to drug their kids,’ ” Ms. Gray said.
“Senator Gray apparently misunderstood my comments as a state senator,” Ms Gerard said. “What I believed then and still believe is that medical treatments, such as Ritalin, can be effective for older children and adults who suffer from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
“My own daughter was treated with Ritalin after a thorough evaluation by a medical professional, and the intervention helped her immensely. Many parents whose children are dealing with behavioral health problems struggle with the decision to turn to psychotropic medications. As health director, my goal is to help those parents and their children access appropriate and comprehensive mental health services,” Ms. Gerard said.
Her 14-year legislative career in the House and Senate ended with Ms. Leff’s 60-vote recount win, but she landed on her feet when Governor Napolitano appointed her as the administration’s adviser for health and human services. Subsequently the governor nominated her for the DHS post after a nationwide search to replace Cathy Eden, who retired a year ago.
Sen. Bennett: ‘Badge of courage’
Senate President Ken Bennett, R-1, said it was “embarrassing” when someone requested a roll call vote in the Senate 15 years ago on his nomination to the Arizona Board of Education. “But now I wear it as a badge of courage,” he said while praising Ms. Gerard’s nomination.
Sen. Robert Cannell, D-24, said Ms. Gerard is a national expert in health care, and Sen. Robert Blendu, R-12, said, “She knows how to spend our dollars well.”
Ms. Hellon said Ms. Gerard is the “perfect appointment for this position.”
“As always, I’m a little bit embarrassed when this body resorts to child-like behavior…” Ms. Hellon said of the request for a roll call vote.
Mr. Gould, who seconded Mr. Harper’s request for the roll call, said later he opposed the nomination because Ms. Gerard is “a leftie.”
Mr. Verschoor said the DHS director supports socialized medicine, and Mr. Martin said there are better candidates for the job.