Edward D. Herlihy is right to condemn eminent domain abuse of the type that took place in both Kelo v. New London and in the unnecessary taking of a wealthy, private golf course by the Village of North Hills, N.Y. ("Eminent Domain Debate Hits the Links," editorial page, March 28). What distinguishes the golf course case, however, is its rarity. Very seldom are the wealthy the victims of eminent domain abuse. Rather, cities and developers typically work together to take the property of poorer or middle-income folks to give to wealthier parties in the hope that the new owners will create more tax revenue and jobs. Much more common is a recent use of eminent domain a little south of North Hills in Long Branch, N.J., where the government seeks to condemn modest beachfront bungalows to give to a developer to put up million-dollar-plus condominiums.
Eminent domain abuse is wrong, whether it happens to 93-year-old former blacksmith Al Viviano and his neighbors in Long Branch or multi-millionaire members of Deepdale. Thankfully, members of Deepdale have the resources to fight back. Unfortunately, most working-class homeowners and small business owners do not. That is why state legislatures must act to protect the rights of all Americans by passing legislation that reforms eminent domain laws and undoes the damage inflicted upon Americans by the Kelo decision.
Scott Bullock
Institute for Justice
Arlington, Va.
(Mr. Bullock is a senior attorney at the Institute for Justice, which represented the homeowners in Kelo v. New London.)
Eminent domain, when employed for anything other than actual and necessary uses by the public, is simply a variant of mob rule. It matters not if that mob is known as Nazis, Communists, the Roman Senate, the New London Development Corporation or the Village of North Hills. The U.S. Constitution was established for one purpose: to prevent mob rule by elevating the natural rights of one individual above the power and greed of a million. This explains the instinctive, visceral and overwhelming reaction of Americans when our Supreme Court reversed this compact in Kelo by altering the text of the Takings Clause from "public use" to one of public "purpose." A brake on government power was transformed overnight into an arbitrary license to seize anyone's property. Mr. Herlihy, thanks to the Kelo decision, is forced to debate the merits of the mob's justifications, rather than the authority of the mob to act.
Decades ago (as Justice Clarence Thomas noted in his dissent in Kelo), eminent domain's use in urban redevelopment projects was known as "negro removal," for obvious reasons. It is hardly surprising that the NAACP filed an amicus brief in Kelo on behalf of the homeowners. The wealthiest Americans now find themselves in the same boat that the least powerful have long occupied -- they should long ago have foreseen this as inevitable.
Douglas Schwartz
New London, Conn.
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