Thread: Malkin Commentary: Donald Trump's Eminent-Domain Empire

Malkin Commentary: Donald Trump's Eminent-Domain Empire

Friday, April 22, 2011
By Michelle Malkin

Don't be fooled by The Donald. Take it from one who knows: I'm a South Jersey gal who was raised on the outskirts of Atlantic City in the looming shadow of Trump's towers. All through my childhood, casino developers and government bureaucrats joined hands, raised taxes and made dazzling promises of urban renewal. Then we wised up to the eminent-domain thievery championed by our hometown faux free-marketeers.

America, it's time you wised up to Donald Trump's property redistribution racket, too.

Trump has been wooing conservative activists for months and flirting with a GOP presidential run -- first at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington and most recently at a tea party event in South Florida. He touts his business experience, "high aptitude" and "bragadocious" deal-making abilities. But he's no more a standard-bearer of conservative values, limited government and constitutional principles than the cast of "Jersey Shore."

Too many mega-developers like Trump have achieved success by using and abusing the government's ability to commandeer private property for purported "public use." Invoking the Fifth Amendment takings clause, real estate moguls, parking garage builders, mall developers and sports palace architects have colluded with elected officials to pull off legalized theft in the name of reducing "blight." Under eminent domain, the definition of "public purpose" has been stretched like Silly Putty to cover everything from roads and bridges to high-end retail stores, baseball stadiums and casinos.

While casting himself as America's new constitutional savior, Trump has shown reckless disregard for fundamental private property rights. In the 1990s, he waged a notorious war on elderly homeowner Vera Coking, who owned a little home in Atlantic City that stood in the way of Trump's manifest land development. The real estate mogul was determined to expand his Trump Plaza and build a limo parking lot -- Coking's private property be damned. The nonprofit Institute for Justice, which successfully saved Coking's home, explained the confiscatory scheme:

"Unlike most developers, Donald Trump doesn't have to negotiate with a private owner when he wants to buy a piece of property, because a governmental agency -- the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority or CRDA -- will get it for him at a fraction of the market value, even if the current owner refuses to sell. Here is how the process works.

"After a developer identifies the parcels of land he wants to acquire and a city planning board approves a casino project, CRDA attempts to confiscate these properties using a process called 'eminent domain,' which allows the government to condemn properties 'for public use.' Increasingly, though, CRDA and other government entities exercise the power of eminent domain to take property from one private person and give it to another. At the same time, governments give less and less consideration to the necessity of taking property and also ignore the personal loss to the individuals being evicted."

Trump has attempted to use the same tactics in Connecticut and has championed the reviled Kelo vs. City of New London Supreme Court ruling upholding expansive use of eminent domain. He told Fox News anchor Neil Cavuto that he agreed with the ruling "100 percent" and defended the chilling power of government to kick people out of their homes and businesses based on arbitrary determinations:

"The fact is, if you have a person living in an area that's not even necessarily a good area, and government, whether it's local or whatever, government wants to build a tremendous economic development, where a lot of people are going to be put to work and make (an) area that's not good into a good area, and move the person that's living there into a better place -- now, I know it might not be their choice -- but move the person to a better place and yet create thousands upon thousands of jobs and beautification and lots of other things, I think it happens to be good."

Like most statist promises of bountiful job creation, government-engineered redevelopment math rarely adds up. Trump's corporations have backed casino industry bailouts and wealth-redistributing "tax-increment financing" schemes -- the very kind of taxpayer-subsidized interventions we've seen on a grand scale under the Obama administration.

Championing liberty begins at the local level. There is nothing more fundamental than the principle that a man's home is his castle. Donald Trump's career-long willingness to trample this right tells you everything you need to know about his bogus tea party sideshow.




http://www.cnsnews.com/commentary/artic ... ain-empire



Hmmmm I like Michelle Malkin, maybe we need to pay a little closer attention to Mr Trump is he a wolf in sheep's clothing????

Kathyet

Does anybody really trust a BILLIONAIRE from a city of BILLIONAIRES?

Does anybody know who one of his close NYC friends who said NYC can't SURVIVE without illegal aliens from Mexico?

Donald Trump has some good ideas and talks a pretty good line. But he has also built his empire upon gambling, and as this article points out, used strong armed tactics to further it. I think he should continue to be a voice for the US not being bullied around by foreign powers. Whether he could clear enough hurdles to get a majority of the American voters to elect him only 16 months from now is a HUGE question. I believe Obama has enough tricks up his sleeve to wage a close re-election battle and the Republicans would be better off uniting behind someone with actual experience like Romney. They could have possible won in 2008 with the right team. We can't afford four more years of "progressive" Obama.

THANK YOU KATHY for showing this to the people.I have been saying this on here for a while hes a fake hes not going to run.As a big buisness man filed bankruptcey 3 times thats all we need run country into bankrupt.He was smart enough when he did file he knew how to hide money over seas to have money after its over.I have never seen a big buisness man yet care about the little man all they care about is making a buck.Trump has bucks trying to make more and making a name bigger for his tv ratings.I myself have never watched his show i dont like him and will never watch his shows or support him in any election even for dog catcher.

Originally Posted by Captainron

Donald Trump has some good ideas and talks a pretty good line. But he has also built his empire upon gambling, and as this article points out, used strong armed tactics to further it. I think he should continue to be a voice for the US not being bullied around by foreign powers. Whether he could clear enough hurdles to get a majority of the American voters to elect him only 16 months from now is a HUGE question. I believe Obama has enough tricks up his sleeve to wage a close re-election battle and the Republicans would be better off uniting behind someone with actual experience like Romney. They could have possible won in 2008 with the right team. We can't afford four more years of "progressive" Obama.

Sorry but I would never vote for MITT ROMNEY


I also thought Mr Trump was worth listening to, but anyone who supports illegal aliens over American Citizens would never have my vote...



Kathyet

Illegals work in many casinos. I wonder if they work in Trump's. Anyone been to one latly?

I have a lot of concerns about Trump's morals and ethics. He is definitely a man who believes the end justifies the means. I think Trump is morally bankrupt!

I believe the attention he is constantly drawing to himself is hurting us in the long run. He is a huge distraction and is drawing attention away from a couple folks that conservative voters should be looking at closely. For example, we should be focusing more on Bachman and Pawlenty, not Trump. I could probably vote for Pawlenty or Bachman, but will never be convinced to vote for Trump. If it came down to Trump and Obama, I'll stay home on election day.