Posted on 02/08/2016 5:25:02 AM PST by jimbo123
The school favored to host the George W. Bush Presidential Library, Dallas's Southern Methodist University, may encounter a snag next week in the form of a lawsuit alleging that the school has improperly seized local homes in order to secure land for the proposed library site.
Amid increasing outrage among Republicans over the use of eminent domain and other coercive measures to obtain private property for public projects, a case in Dallas County's 134th Civil District Court, which is set to begin on Tuesday, will determine whether the university violated its legal obligations to local homeowners in an effort to secure the land currently occupied by the University Gardens condominium complex, a potential library site.
"They're taking my home," said Gary Vodicka, one of the litigants and a University Gardens owner and resident, yesterday.
(Excerpt) Read more at nysun.com ...
Look up New York Times Building on WIKI. Eminent Domain was involved for “blighted” properties.
And a Presidential Library is equivalent to a casino parking garage in what way?
“They’re taking my home,” said Gary Vodicka”
Gary, Gary, Gary, don’t you know you and your family home are just collateral in the big scheme of things? You know good and well, the George Bush Library and Worship Center is much more important to the glorifying and deification of George Bush than you, your family and you pitiful lives.
I think that might cover it. At lest in the Elite’s view.
A casino provides more jobs and tax revenue for the community than a tax-exempt library. Plus the Bush library evicted almost 400 people from their homes.
Don’t forget about all of Jeb’s donors in the debate audience who have used eminent domain for profit and political purposes.
I do not remember if Jeb is a lawyer, but he did try to sound like trump committed a death penalty crime.
A presidential library and a casino lawn actually. I think the lady’s property was simply to be lawn. I could be wrong, but in either case you question raises the issue of eminent domain.
The most important question is WHY does the library HAVE to be at that one particular location out of thousands and thousands of acres that it could be on of people who WILL sell?
So you support more taxes for the community? Are you for higher gas taxes? They’re used for roads, you know. Do you support taxes on big gulps and junk food? Those revenues can be used to treat obese people with health problems.
Conservatives do not support higher taxes in any guise. Conservatism holds that we, the people, are better stewards over our money than the government is.
Get hold of some of Thomas Sowell’s books on economics.
The lady’s home was not bulldozed. She never sold to Trump.
Both Bush and Trump are WRONG.
AMERICANS shouldn’t forfeit their God given Property Rights so greedy governments and the Crony Capitalist pals can seize properties for profit and tax revenue.
If the property was abandoned or the owner isn’t paying property tax that is one case. The idea the government is free to prey on people who aren’t rich to benefit crony capitalist is repulsive and in American.
Once again, you can argue whether or not this is a good use of the power of eminent domain, but it is a public university, hence a part of state government. Still not comparable with the Kelo decision or what Trump tried to do.
AMERICANS shouldn’t forfeit their God given Property Rights so greedy governments and the Crony Capitalist pals can seize properties for profit and tax revenue.
-----------
The Keystone pipeline is a private for profit enterprise for a Canadian corporation that will use eminent domain to be built - it is not like a public highway or a public bridge as some of the liars state about it when this is brought up like Bush lied.
The Keystone pipeline may even be made exempt from taxes and there will be no profit sharing with the communities it will go through.
If you hold your position for the Keystone pipeline then I salute your view. If you try and argue that the Keystone pipeline is different then I would have to think otherwise about your view.
I am not for higher taxes. I am for creating jobs.
For-profit casinos create way more jobs than non-profit libraries like the Bush library at SMU.
And the Bush library is staffed with Bush-Rove cronies and socialist academics from SMU.
SMU is a private university.
-----
What Trump tried to do would have been better for the community and less intrusive than a vanity project that will generate no tax revenue and gobbles up acres. Trump went an 18 room crack house/prostitute den that is euphemistically called a "boarding house" in the press. It predated the Kelo decision. If the Republicans are so upset about Kelo where has the constitutional amendment draft been to overturn it?
The Bush library eminent domain deal was also a way to get rid of the “undesirable” kids living in the condos who were attending the nationally recognized Highland Park schools.
You are making a logic error in conflating the two situations. One case of eminent domain was for a casino parking garage, which would have been owned by a private party who would have been the sole beneficiary of any profit or use of the facility.
The second case was a public agency (a public university) using eminent domain for a library that is owned and operated by the university. Roads, school and libraries are just the type of "public use" projects envisioned by the Constitution for eminent domain cases. The fact that it was a Presidential library is really irrelevant as far as the Constitutional issue goes.
“Both Bush and Trump are WRONG.”
Perhaps.
But Bush is a hypocrite, Trump is not.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.