Free Republic

Weeds, glass, bricks, pieces of pipe and shingle splinters have replaced the knot of aging homes at the site of the nation's most notorious eminent domain project. But what of the promised building boom that was supposed to come wrapped and ribboned with up to 3,169 new jobs and $1.2 million a year in tax revenues? They are noticeably missing.

One of the areas where the country may have lost ground in the last election is in the area of eminent domain. There seems to be wide agreement across political lines that the Kelo vs. New London decision, which gave local governments virtually unlimited power to usurp private property and turn it over to other, favored, private interests, was unwise and unjust. Only the far left, unfortunately represented by Supreme Court Justices Stevens, Breyer, Ginsburg, and Souter (and in this case, Kennedy) are in favor of granting this power to government. With a Democrat majority in the Senate now, all...

Among the debris of the election this month one good thing did happen – the Kelo decision by the Supreme Court was effectively nullified by many states. Kelo v. New London established the incredible concept that government bodies could take, by force, privately owned property and transfer that property to another private party. This fall, nine of twelve states passed constitutional amendments banning this practice. In addition, the federal government and many other states have passed restrictions on this anti-American practice which turns upside down our bedrock value of private property rights. Eminent domain should only be used to acquire...

HARRISBURG -- A city agency violated the separation of church and state when it seized a woman's home to help a religious group build a private school in a blighted Philadelphia neighborhood, a state appeals court ruled yesterday. In a 4-3 ruling, Commonwealth Court said the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority should not have condemned Mary Smith's property in North Philadelphia in 2003 so that the Hope Partnership for Education could build a middle school. The court said the seizure by eminent domain ran afoul of a clause in the U.S. Constitution that keeps Congress from establishing religion or preventing its free...

If the justice is so fond of eminent domain, say protesters, let's seize his ancestral property and develop a charming bed and breakfast on it.Weare, New HampshireLOGAN DARROW CLEMENTS doesn't seem like the sort of fellow who'd go around stealing the houses of Supreme Court justices. He's mild mannered and laughs easily, often at his own jokes. Physically he resembles a less creepy Ralph Reed: He looks like a 36-year-old altar boy whose mom made him scrub up and dress for dinner. An Ayn Rand devotee, he heads an objectivist discussion group back home in Los Angeles. A zippy evening...

Conservatives of all stripes have certain desires concerning the makeup and evolution of the Supreme Court. We may not agree on all details, but we are united in wanting the Court to act as a court should act – that is, interpreting and applying the laws as passed by representatives of the people, the House of Representatives and the Senate. To be specific with regard to widely discussed issues, we want to see Roe vs. Wade and Kelo vs. New London overturned, and we want the “establishment” clause of our Constitution to be interpreted and applied as it was...

Arlington, Va. — BB&T, the nation’s ninth largest financial holdings company with $109.2 billion in assets, announced today that it “will not lend to commercial developers that plan to build condominiums, shopping malls and other private projects on land taken from private citizens by government entities using eminent domain.” In a press release issued today by the bank, BB&T Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John Allison, said, “The idea that a citizen’s property can be taken by the government solely for private use is extremely misguided, in fact it’s just plain wrong. One of the most basic rights of every...

The 2006 Index of Economic Freedom measures 161 countries against a list of 50 independent variables divided into 10 broad factors of economic freedom. Low scores are more desirable. The higher the score on a factor, the greater the level of government interference in the economy and the less economic freedom a country enjoys.

Speaking to a bar association meeting in Las Vegas last week, United States Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens confessed that he thought one of his own recent opinions, though correct as a matter of law, was wrong as a matter of policy. Stevens authored the majority opinion in Kelo v. City of New London, which upheld the forced sale of private homes to a commercial real estate developer. Yet he commented at the meeting that his constitutional judgment in that case was "entirely divorced from my judgment concerning the wisdom of the program."It seems that no one has...

While the ink has hardly set on the U.S. Supreme Court's controversial 5-4 ruling in the Kelo vs. New London case, a move is underway to urge Congress to pass a constitutional amendment affording greater protection to property owners from unwanted government intervention for the promotion of economic development. Rep. David Floyd, R-Bardstown, has signed on for a resolution that has made its rounds among Kentucky House minority members. Have the Supremes finally flipped their judicial wigs? Here is some background as well as some key language, from the majority as well as the dissent sides: The Connecticut Supreme Court's...

An advertising entrepreneur leading an effort to seize David Souter's home in response to the high court's controversial eminent domain decision is encouraging citizens to mount a campaign against leaders of the justice's New Hampshire town. Logan Darrow Clements said today on "Joseph Farah's WorldNetDaily RadioActive" program that the five members of the board of selectmen of Weare, N.H., rejected his proposal to take Souter's property, prompting a call for their removal from office. Clements wrote to the board, explaining he needed to find out if they already opposed the proposal so he would know whether it was worth the...

The five-four decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in Susette Kelo et al v City of New London, Connecticut et al (June 23, 2005) well could trigger the terrifying risk to private property which Justice Sandra Day O'Connor envisions in her Dissent (joined by the Chief Justice and Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas): " . . . Under the banner of economic development, all private property is now vulnerable to being taken and transferred to another private owner . . . who will use it in a way that the legislature deems more beneficial to the...

(ARLINGTON, June 29) -- Arlington City Council members have authorized eminent domain proceedings against 19 properties needed for the new Cowboys stadium. So far, about 20 people have agreed to sell their properties to the city. Each owner will receive more than $22 thousand over fair market value. Those fighting the city have forfeited their chances at the incentive. Last night's ruling paves the way for the city to condemn dozens more properties. Arlington promised the Cowboys that the stadium site would be ready for construction by next March.

...We need to restore the original definitions of "law," "establishment," and "religion" in the First Amendment. A monument or display could never be a "law," the mere posting or installation of it is not an "establishment," and the recognition of God by the public display of the Ten Commandments is not "religion." After all, the original definition of the word "religion" -- the duties we owe to our Creator and the manner of discharging those duties -- which was recognized by the Supreme Court years ago, acknowledged God and a higher law. ...[I]t should be clear that, as Justice Antonin...

WASHINGTON D.C., June 23, 2005 – “The American Farm Bureau Federation is outraged that the Supreme Court ruled government bodies can use eminent domain authority to take private property for economic development by private businesses. The ruling in favor of the city in Kelo v. City of New London could have serious negative consequences to farmers and ranchers. “Apparently no one’s home, or farm and ranch land, is safe from government seizure because of this ruling. “The American Farm Bureau Federation has preservation of private property rights as a major policy position. Farm Bureau members and staff will assess the...

Professor: N.C. unaffected by Supreme Court condemnation ruling The Associated Press June 23, 2005   4:55 pm RALEIGH, N.C. -- A U.S. Supreme Court ruling Thursday that allows local governments to seize homes and businesses against the will of the owners for private development won't affect North Carolina, a professor said.Existing North Carolina law lays out nine conditions under which cities and counties can condemn private land, including those to create or expand roads, parks, sewer lines and government buildings.But private development isn't on that list, said David Lawrence, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Government...

The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard arguments in Kelo v. New London, the Connecticut eminent domain case which will determine how this ultimate government power is used for generations. The truth has been obscured in this and almost every other case of eminent domain seizure for "economic benefit."So many of the facts in this and similar cases have been obscured and misrepresented that a new web site has been created dedicated to countering this propaganda.  Use it as a resource to obtain the truth.Learn the facts here:  http://www.CottageCoalition.orgYou will learn: New London is not a city in economic distress. Its...