In the October issue of Harper's, Joshua Kurlantzick seems to have stumbled upon a disturbing revelation pertaining to property seizures in the name of the public good. Speaking to the Kelo decision, Kurlantzick writes:
This support [of Democrats] only confirms many voters' fears (and the Republicans' incessantly pushed portrayal) of the minority party as haughtily paternalistic, unresponsive to individual rights, uncaring about the needs of the little guy. In a pending Senate bill that would prevent all seizures for economic development, only two of the twenty-five co-sponsors were Democrats; this summer, 157 Democrats in the House voted against a successful amendment to a bill that restricts transportation funds from being used for eminent domain takings. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, one of the country's most prominent and admittedly liberal Democrats, supported the New London decision, even saying, strangely, that the Court's ruling was "as if God had spoken."
Do I sense some disappointment in Mr. Kurlantzick's voice? It sounds to me like this is a guy who suddenly realized that his boys are on the wrong side. Welcome to reality. I surmise that Kurlantzick is only upset because his beloved "little guy" tends to be disproportionately hurt by the use of eminent domain. I would guess he's less likely to care if a city council decided to seize the home of a Bill Gates to build a Walmart. Nonetheless, this is a step. Once statists and "public-good"-cheering liberals (like Joshua Kurlantzick) realize that power granted is power that will one day, inevitably, be abused and directed towards you and your interests, we will all be better off. C'mon, Josh, look into the light.
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