Senate Democrats have gotten the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate Trump’s efforts to use Eminent Domain to seize private land for his border wall.
Senate Democratic Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said, “The Trump administration’s plan to seize privately held land—at whatever cost and by whatever means necessary—for the president’s expensive, ineffective border wall is yet another outrageous power grab by an administration constantly challenging any limits on its authority. Make no mistake: this administration is trying to take away Americans’ private property without an ounce of oversight and has repeatedly failed to provide basic, critical information, including how many citizens will have their land seized. I am glad the U.S. Government Accountability Office will investigate the administration’s disturbing efforts.â€
Trump is trying to seize the private property of American citizens so that he can claim to have kept a campaign promise ahead of the 2020 election.
“I welcome the new GAO investigation into the Trump administration’s abuse of eminent domain to seize the property of land owners for a wasteful and unpopular border wall,†said Senator Tom Udall (D-NM). “Not only is the Trump administration stealing funds from critical military projects to pay for the wall, they’re also pushing to take away people’s private land often with little to no compensation — with the president reportedly ordering officials to ‘take the land’ and ‘don’t worry’ about the law because ‘I’ll pardon you.’ Under this administration’s thoughtless and potentially lawless land grab, homes could be confiscated, farms and livelihoods ruined, neighbors cut off from one another, Tribal sovereignty upended, and endangered species and habitat lost forever. In the interest of preserving the rule of law, stopping waste, fraud and abuse, and protecting the private landownership of Americans living along the border, the administration should suspend all use of eminent domain until GAO is able to fully investigate this issue to its conclusion. Congress and the American people deserve honest answers.â€
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The seizure of private land should only be used as a dead last resort. Trump is using eminent domain as a shortcut to fast track his wall.
Republicans have abandoned all of their principles under Trump, including holding private property sacred, but Democrats are defending the rights of all Americans from a president who is engaging in a shameless power grab.
At least America still has one political party that is willing to stand up for the nation’s values.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
