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Friday, November 1, 2002
Contact: Peter Bailley
news@knox.edu
309-341-7715
GALESBURG -- The candidate for governor of Illinois who is "fortunate enough — or unfortunate enough — to win the election next Tuesday [Nov. 5]... will have to say 'no' to a lot of people... will have to set priorities and eliminate programs that are not essential," said former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar, in the 2002 Robison Lecture, Thursday, Oct. 31 at Knox College, Galesburg, Illinois. [Photo: Jim Edgar at Knox College. Download for publication.]
Both candidates have pledged not to raise taxes, which will hamper efforts to balance the state budget. Edgar faced a similar problem when he took office in 1990, but was able to make cuts that aren't available any longer. "We found a lot of options then, and we used them up."
The next governor also will have to "restore public confidence" in state government... the perception out there is not good," Edgar said. "The governor will have to develop trust with the electorate."
Edgar said the governor will have to gain public trust in order to lead the state, which he defined as "convincing people to go where they don't want to go."
In addition, Edgar said the next governor will have to assemble an administrative team at the same time that "thousands of key state employees are taking early retirement."
Edgar served two terms as Governor of Illinois, winning his second term by the largest plurality in state history. Previously he had held elective offices of Illinois Secretary of State and Illinois State Representative, as well as appointed positions as Director of Legislative Affairs in the Illinois Governor's Office, Director of State Services for the National Conference of State Legislatures in Denver, and legislative aide to leaders in the Illinois House and Senate.
Since retiring from politics in 1999, Edgar has held academic appointments at Columbia University, the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, and the Institute of Government and Public Affairs at the University of Illinois.
Edgar is a 1968 graduate of Eastern Illinois University. His political papers are housed at EIU and the University awarded him an honorary Doctor of Public Service Degree.
The Robison Lecture Series was established in 1987 by Charles B. Robison of Des Plaines, Illinois, to sponsor lectures at Knox by experts in the fields of insurance, economics, law and public policy. A native of Lewistown, Robison is a 1934 Knox graduate, now retired after a distinguished career in the field of insurance law.
Founded in 1837, Knox is a national liberal arts college in Galesburg, Illinois, with students from 48 states and 40 nations. Knox's "Old Main" is a National Historic Landmark and the only building remaining from the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates.
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