Trump tramples core conservative belief in property rights

Washington Examiner ^ | 1/26/16 | Washington Examiner

[Isara]

Margaret Thatcher, when she was British Prime Minister, used a simple formula to describe the economic freedoms due to a properly free people: "A man's right to work as he will, to spend what he earns, to own property, to have the state as servant and not as master." This was, in her view, "the British inheritance."

Her thinking, influenced by centuries of English jurisprudence and political philosophy, provides a modern statement of the same rights that America's founders sought to bestow upon their posterity. Thatcher's phrase embodies the conservative view of the role of government and of citizens' rights in a well-functioning and free society.

Property ownership exists in some form in every nation, but it is often informal. Even in the most unfree nations, the powerful elite feel secure about what they own, in part because the property rights of others are theirs to trample.

What distinguishes America from such countries is not its abundance of natural resources or the race of its people, but its scrupulous cultural and legal dedication to protecting everyone's private property rights. This critical application of the rule of law is what allowed a massive middle class to form and grow on a scale unprecedented in history.

This is not some minor point or obscure issue. This is what made America great.

This is why anyone who wants the United States to remain a great country should be concerned that Donald Trump, who is running for the presidency, defends his own use of government to trample other people's property rights as a positive thing. Merely defending eminent domain, a valid legal principle recognized in the U.S. Constitution for obtaining private land for needed public uses, is one thing. But using it for private gain is quite another. And it is not as though Trump used it long ago and now disavows his actions as wrong.

But he has not seen the error of his ways. To this day, Trump defends his own use of state force to trample the property rights of a person less powerful than himself. He views it as a positive good and regrets only that the courts stopped him in one well-known instance.

In 1994, as we have previously noted, Trump tried to use his connections and wealth to make government his tool for plundering an Atlantic City widow named Vera Coking. He wanted to build a parking garage where her house stood, and so he got a local government agency to force the sale for just 25 percent of what she had previously been offered for it. The agency would then transfer ownership of the property to his company.

Fortunately, Trump lost that case in court. He has offered various comments when asked about it, but they all amount to the same thing. His argument has been that a man's home is his castle only as long as the government cannot find a use for it that better maximizes tax revenues. As he once put it to a reporter for this publication, "If you're going to create 10,000 jobs for a town that's in trouble and you need a piece of property, I'll tell you what folks, I want to create jobs. ..."

On other occasions, Trump has defended and praised the Supreme Court's Kelo decision, which justified eminent domain abuse. The decision prompted a huge backlash and spurred legislators in several states to make new laws to protect homeowners from people like Trump. Even Bernie Sanders, who is running president on the Democratic side, has spoken against Kelo; the socialist Vermont senator is more conservative on property rights than Trump.

Trump's corporatist and authoritarian vision of central planning might work for a CEO who is granted great power to operate his own company as he sees fit. But it can never be acceptable way for a president to govern a free republic under a constitution. Trump's departure from such a foundational American principle is one of many reasons why conservatives voting in early caucuses and primaries should think twice before jumping on to his authoritarian bandwagon.

[Isara]

Your handy, dandy Trump vs. Cruz comparison chart!

Simply click each policy or issue to read the back-story.

Policy or Issue	Trump	Cruz
In 2013, supported Amnesty for all 20 million illegal aliens in the U.S.	Yes	No
In 2000, supported an Assault Weapons Ban	Yes	No
In 2015, supported "touchback" Amnesty for every illegal alien in the U.S.	Yes	No
In 2000, supported Partial-Birth Abortion	Yes	No
In 2015, lied to gun media about his past support for an Assault Weapons Ban	Yes	No
Supports seizure of private property by the government using Eminent Domain (Kelo)	Yes	No
Supports Mitch McConnell's habitual lies to constituents and fellow GOP Senators	Yes	No
Currently courting and being courted by GOP establishment	Yes	No
Currently supports crony capitalism: billions in taxpayer ethanol subsidies	Yes	No
In 2000, supported Extended Waiting Periods to Acquire Firearms	Yes	No
Amount of debt owed to bankers	Many billions	$1 million
Amount donated to the bogus Clinton "Foundation"	$100,000	0
Endorsed by GOPe icon Bob Dole, who thought Ronald Reagan was "too fringe"	Yes	No
Number of bankruptcies declared by firms he led	4	0
Amount of debt defaulted on	$4.7 billion	$0.00
Number of times married	3	1
Number of "birther" conspiracy theories circulated	2	0
Praised/endorsed Communist for Mayor of New York	Yes	No
Spends virtually every waking moment on social media	Yes	No
Appears to shift his position on important issues literally overnight	?	No
A guy so stable, sober and poised that you want his finger on the button	?	Yep

[Isara]

"Trump's corporatist and authoritarian vision of central planning might work for a CEO who is granted great power to operate his own company as he sees fit. But it can never be acceptable way for a president to govern a free republic under a constitution. Trump's departure from such a foundational American principle is one of many reasons why conservatives voting in early caucuses and primaries should think twice before jumping on to his authoritarian bandwagon."

[Uncle Miltie]

And it doesn’t matter.

IBTDS.

[Isara]

Presidential Candidates Comparison (Cruz vs. Trump)

Please click on the dots for more details on the ratings of the candidates.

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More at Conservative Review: https://www.conservativereview.com/2016-presidential-candidates

[Gaffer]

It is telling that the only example of Washington Examiner’s hit piece on Trump mainly cites a 1994 opinion by him. I’ve been castigated by some here for citing opinions of various candidates going all the way back to irrelevant 2013. 1994? Oh my what a frigging travesty.

[Wissa]

What distinguishes America from such countries is... its scrupulous cultural and legal dedication to protecting everyone's private property rights. This critical application of the rule of law is what allowed a massive middle class to form and grow on a scale unprecedented in history.

Stealing the land from the Indians (or forcing them to "voluntarily" sign a treaty under threat of military action) didn't hurt the growth either.

[McGruff]

A Homeowner's Refusal to Cash Out in a Gambling Town Proves Costly

and Ted Cruz's campaign ad lied about her house being bulldozed. Nice conservative values.

[CA Conservative]

It is telling that the only example of Washington Examiner's hit piece on Trump mainly cites a 1994 opinion by him.

Actually Trump has repeated his support for Kelo during this campaign, including in one of the debates. So this is not an opinion from 1994, but his current stand on the issue.

[montag813]

Trump tramples core conservative belief in property rights

Um, isn't the Fifth Amendment a "core conservative belief"? It was for the Founders, and it is what allows for Eminent Domain. How do they think we built the interstate highway system? Private property rights are NOT absolute, and can be taken by the govermnent, so long as "just compensation" is offered.

[DoughtyOne]

Until the last few months I hadn’t realized what a “challenged” group we have here.

The same issues are raised almost daily by people who don’t seem to know. You feel so sorry for them.

Some of them post things here that are demonstrably untrue.

They don’t have the mental faculties to know it, or the morals to know that isn’t right.

Some of them know they are doing it, and then ask us to contact a third party, as if that third party owned their morality.

Sad really.

And of course the man they support is the most moral person in all the world.

The amoral assure of that, and we smile.

[Gaffer]

Yet the WE article prominently mentions the 1994 thing as prima facie evidence. We can all imply and equivocate all we feel is necessary for our candidate. I like Trump now mainly because my prior support for Cruz was diminished by constant ridiculous attempts by his supporters that border on reckless invective. I STILL like both of them and would be happy to have either as the nominee, but I don’t personally countenance the diminishment of either among what I think are like minded supporters here in the end.

We are getting out of hand here and this needs to stop.

[Trumpinator]

Thank the Lord, Cruz is defending the rights of a crack house to exist in Atlantic City. Where would the crack heads go had Trump been able to develop that property?

[SaxxonWoods]

“[W]hen you have a hero, leading the troops in the heat of battle against a despised oppressor, you don’t worry about his marriages, past ideological indiscretions or salty language. You charge right behind him.” This is largely why Trump’s contradictions don’t matter.

-Selwyn Duke

tagline says it...

[alstewartfan]

The desires of King Donald supercede the Constitution. Got a problem with that?

[SaxxonWoods]

When you have a hero, leading the troops in the heat of battle against a despised oppressor, you don’t worry about his marriages, past ideological indiscretions or salty language. You charge right behind him. This is largely why Trump’s contradictions don’t matter.

-Selwyn Duke

Trying again...

[scooby321]

Trump is not a King

Bankruptcy laws are older than anyone here

Jobs created by Cruz? 0

Property rights were lost by GH Bush appointee David Souter not Trump

Cruz lies about a house that still stands

Talk about standing ?

You can have Glen Beck

[Hoodat]

Property rights were lost by GH Bush appointee David Souter

And Trump is on record saying that he 100% supports it.

[MarMema]

Personally I think they are both sociopaths. On a continuum they may even be at about the same place.
So I will vote for either or the one that will keep us the farthest from communism. That libertarian one looks good but won’t beat Hernia.
(Hillary+Bernie)

[bigbob]

Cruz lied, this story died.

[BfloGuy]

How do they think we built the interstate highway system?

Kelo wasn't about public works projects; it defended the government's taking private property to sell or give to another private owner. Trump thinks that's just fine.

That's what's troubling us -- not the blasted interstate highway system.