The Tripod

Photo Courtesy of Bryce Snarski-Pierce. Snarski-Pierce '09 is currently running for office in Hartford. [Click to enlarge]

This week, Carver Diserens '09 interviews Bryce Snarski-Pierce '09 of Norwich, Conn. Snarski-Pierce is running for State Representative of Connecticut's fourth district.

Carver Diserens: In this election year, lack of experience is constantly brought up as a weak point for candidates. What do you say to critics who say a 22-year-old Engineering student is not fit to hold this office?

Bryce Snarski-Pierce: The incumbent is a two-term incumbent-and I don't really like to talk negatively about my opponent-but if you look at his Web site, he hasn't really done much. I believe that people think of me as more than just an Engineering student. I am very much a student of the liberal arts. I am a capable leader, and I have the ability to understand the issues that affect Hartford. Experience may be an issue but ability is not.

CD: What encompasses the fourth district?

BSP: There are nine districts in Hartford. District four includes Trinity College and everything to the east, all the way to the river. It has 21,300 people.

CD: If Trinity students registered here, are they registered in district four?

BSP: If they registered at 300 Summit St., they are part of district four. In regards to them, only 1,254 votes were cast in the fourth district two years ago, in the last election. So if three-quarters of Trinity students were to register and vote for me, I would likely win the election hands down.

CD: What issues do you think are most important to the people of the fourth district?

BSP: I've walked around the district. The number-one issue is the school system in Hartford; it's a disaster, graduation rates from high school are under 20 percent. If you look at what New Haven and Bridgeport have done in the past five years, they have instituted charter schools. Charter schools are not an all-encompassing solution to the education problem in this country, but they are an improvement on what is really a disastrous education system. If you look at the way the school systems have been run the past decade or so, it went from being this political machine, a sort of visceral thing that didn't really make sense, to being micro-managed by the state legislature. For a few years, the Connecticut State Assembly was pretty much the Hartford Board of Education. No Child Left Behind did not really help the system because it is a largely unfunded mandate. If you look at the doubling of state scores in the charter system in New Haven and Bridgeport, I think that's probably the easiest, most cost-effective step to change.

CD: You're running in the Connecticut for Lieberman Party. Given his recent changes in political outlook, should the party change it's name?

BSP: A group of Lieberman supporters created the party; he never joined it. According to the Secretary of State's rules, it's not technically allowed. But it happened. The party has ballot status, which is exciting because running as a third-party candidate is difficult. The Party can't really change its name because that is the Party that has the line status. A lot of people feel betrayed by Lieberman, especially registered Democrats, but that issue is not part of my platform.

CD: Are you worried about people not voting for you because your name is attached to Joe Lieberman's?

BSP: I know that that exists, but it works in both ways.

CD: In some of the less publicized races, people may tend to only vote by party affiliation. Are you worried that, due to your ballot position not being on the Democratic or Republican rows, you may not attract as many votes?

BSP: I'm told, by party leadership, that people in Hartford are used to having unusual ballot arrangement. Connecticut allows cross-endorsement of candidates, so I'm told that Hartford voters are used to looking more closely at their ballots.

CD: Most seniors dread the question, "What are you planning to do after graduation?" For the time being, do you enjoy answering it?

BSP: [Laughs] Sure. I mean I've got an "If I win- " and an "If I lose-" response.

CD: I'm a firm believer that life is all about optimism, but let's say you do not win the election. Will you continue to seek other political office? What is your contingency plan?

BSP: I would not seek political office immediately. I would continue to go to school or I would work for a few years, probably an engineering job. I was fortunate to have an internship at General Dynamics Electric Boat, working on nuclear submarines, in Groton, Connecticut, so I might try to work there.

CD: When you say, "school," what do you mean?

BSP: Law school. I just took the LSAT.

CD: Would you like to endorse any other candidates for office?

BSP: Our Party has officially endorsed Barack Obama for president. As far as Connecticut, we are on an odd-year cycle, there are no other candidates currently running, but I, of course, support all the other members of my party.

CD: What other issues would you address?

BSP: I'm very serious about eminent domain. There was the Kelo versus New London Supreme Court in 2005 that basically said government has the right to take your private property and give it to a private developer. That's not cool. Private property is right up there in the beginning of the Constitution. Eminent domain is an important tool, but Connecticut needs to enact legislature that restrict this power. Also, Connecticut residents pay more for electricity than any other state, hands down. It's time to put a nuclear power plant in this state. Between here and New Haven there are a lot of high-tech jobs, and we certainly can do it. Who doesn't need cheaper energy right now? But it's also a jobs issue, if you look at the Millstone power plant in Niantic, it creates jobs, a lot of jobs, and those are hand-in-hand, two good things.

CD: Do you have any final message you would like to share with the Trinity community?

BSP: On campus, you hear complaints about apathy but there is also a great level of participation like the ConnPIRG kids getting people registered to vote. I want to provide another way for Trinity students to care about politics, Connecticut, and the city they live in. I feel like this is a very forward and exciting way to get students interested in these issues on the state level.

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