Oct 29, 2012 3 min read

For the first time in more than three decades, voters in Pennsylvania’s 50th Legislative District, which includes all of Greene County and parts of Washington and Fayette counties, will elect a representative other than H. William DeWeese. The once-powerful and influential Democrat from Waynesburg is now serving a prison sentence for using legislative staff and other public resources to bolster his election campaigns from 2001 to 2006. On the day he was sentenced in February, DeWeese resigned from the House, leaving the district unrepresented. It wasn’t until August, though, when an appellate judge removed DeWeese’s name from the general election ballot, that we knew there would be a contest between two candidates who could actually take office in January and serve a two-year term. So the match-up will be Republican Mark W. Fischer of Waynesburg and Greene County Commissioner Pam Snyder for the Democrats. The decision facing voters in the 50th comes down to whether to elect Snyder, who is serving her third term as county commissioner, or Fischer, a businessman and elected Waynesburg Borough councilman who says his conservatism and diverse background in and out of government gives him a different focus. In this case, we believe voters in the 50th District would best be served by sending Snyder to Harrisburg. A sitting legislator, whether a freshman or one with years of seniority, has to understand the dynamics of power in the state’s capital. They need to know where funds are going and how some can be allocated for their constituents. Snyder, who serves as the first vice president of the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania, and was named by that association as Pennsylvania’s 2012 Outstanding County Commissioner of the Year, will be able to hit the ground running should she reach Harrisburg. Fischer, while demonstrating an impressive grasp of the issues, espouses a tea party stance of reducing the size, scope and impact of government on an individual’s life. He said he has significant experience working in government at the local, state and federal level, including working as a deputy fire chief, fire marshal and emergency manager for Cocoa Beach, Fla.; working as assistant director of program operations in the Virtual Medical Campus/Homeland Security Programs for West Virginia University; and working as a contractor for the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C. His work in these areas is commendable, but we are reluctant to put them on the same plane as Snyder’s government experience. Both agree on some key issues, such as term limits for legislators and property tax reform. But it is their positions on the role of government that are noteworthy. Fischer believes it is best for an individual to decide how to spend their money, while Snyder said government should protect the health, safety and welfare of the people. If, she said, we want safe roads, safe bridges, clean water and economic growth and development, you have to have government playing a part. It need not be big government, but it shouldn’t be minimized to the point where it’s ineffective. This common-sense, clear-eyed approach is part of the reason why we recommend Snyder to be the next representative from the 50th Legislative District.