JUDGE SAMUEL ALITO: ONE REASON HIS CONFIRMATION IS SO IMPORTANT - EMINENT DOMAIN

If you will recall this past June the United States Supreme Court, in an extremely controversial opinion held up a lower court ruling which allowed New London, Conn. to seize private property from individuals in order to allow that property to be developed in a way that would increase the tax base of the city. There are many provisions in the Constitution that this violates but suffice it to say that this was another example of legislation from the bench. The ramifications of this ruling have become painfully evident in Oakland, California when the City Council seized the property of Revelli Tire and several other business's in order to give the properties to a private developer who plans to build luxury condominiums. The Revelli Tire Company was a family owned business that had been in existence for 56 YEARS and the city of Oakland using the power given them through the New London ruling by the High Court padlocked the door and seized all of the assets and the Revelli property for the new development. City officials stated that they had offered, "more than fair market value, " for the property but when the Revelli's turned down the offer for they did NOT want to sell, Oakland just took the property leaving the family without a means to earn a living! Why then is the nomination of Judge Alito so important ? A liberal based court whose activist rulings and bench legislations brought down the New London decision. Nowhere in the Constitution does it state that personal property is only ours at the discretion of the government. Judge Alito believes in the true intent and an originalists interpretation of the Constitution and the limited powers of the judiciary. This type of court would NOT have ruled in favor on New London and the Revelli's would still have their business.

Ken Taylor