2 position, according to the state constitution. Henry McMaster was elevated to the governorship following Haley’s departure to join the Trump administration.Īs Senate leader, Leatherman would have been next in line to assume the state’s No. Leatherman briefly stepped away from that position in 2017 when then-Lt.
Shane Massey, said that role combined with Leatherman’s committee leadership posts put “way too much power” in the hands of a single lawmaker. Henry McMaster - whom Leatherman ultimately endorsed - Warren referred to the longtime lawmaker as among the “rotten apples” he would work to root out of the Legislature if elected.įor a time, Leatherman presided over his chamber as Senate president pro tempore.
Two years later, he became a frequent target for GOP gubernatorial contender John Warren, who criticized Leatherman as not being conservative enough for the state. Nikki Haley actively campaigned against Leatherman, endorsing his GOP primary opponent and saying “there is not a tax that he hasn’t tried to raise.” Mark Sanford in 2009 threatened to reject hundreds of millions of dollars in federal stimulus money, or use it to pay down state debt, Leatherman wrote that he hoped the governor “will understand the seriousness of the damage to our people if we don’t get that money” and called the debt substitution request “foolish.” Never shy to skirmish with those in his own party, Leatherman had contentious relationships with Republican governors and others seeking to rise in the GOP. For years, the longtime lawmaker fielded criticism for how much state funding was directed toward his home district, as well as millions in state contracts given to the concrete company he founded, and from which he continued to draw a salary. Leatherman played a key role in building up the state’s business economy, including backing a massive tax incentive package that helped lure Boeing to the state.
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