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BB&T Bank
Fights Eminent Domain
By Michael A. Minton
In what seems to me to be a stunning and heroic move, BB&T Banks Wednesday
announced that they will no longer provide loans to developers who have obtained
land through the use of the recent misguided (to say it mildly) interpretation
of eminent domain.
The use of eminent domain was brutally, and unconstitutionally, redefined last
June by a Supreme Court decision which allowed local governments to basically
steal private property for the sole purpose of selling it to a private developer
because the developer's plans could increase the government's tax base.
In a 5-4 decision, now known as Kelo, the Supreme Court allowed the city of New
London, CT to take control of the lands of seven private property owners in
order to clear the way for a hotel and some high-ticket condominiums. Since that
time, property owners across the country have been abused by local governments
which have been seizing land in reverse-Robin hood fashion. Instead of stealing
from the rich and giving to the poor, they have been stealing from the poor and
middle class, and giving to the rich.
Since its inception, eminent domain has been a policy which allowed the
government to seize property, paying fair market value to the owner, in order
for the property to be used for a public use. Until Kelo, 'public use' had been
interpreted as things such as hospitals, schools and roads. With Kelo, all that
changed. Now, raising the local tax revenue is all it takes to meet the
standard.
BB&T has said ENOUGH! NO MORE! In a statement released Wednesday, BB&T Chairman
and CEO John Allison said, "The idea that a citizen's property can be taken by
the government solely for private use is extremely misguided, in fact it's just
plain wrong." What a guy!
Ken Chalk, BB&T CCO (Chief Credit Officer), said that the bank expected to lose
a little business, but that this was a stance which they felt they had to take.
Said he, "We do business with a large number of consumers and small businesses
in our footprint. We are hearing from clients that this is an important
philosophical issue."
Mr. Chalk went on to say, "While we're certainly optimistic about the pending
legislation, this is something we could not wait any longer to address...[w]e're
a company where our values dictate our decision-making and operating standards.
From that standpoint, this was a straightforward decision; it's simply the right
thing to do."
The pending legislation to which Mr. Chalk was referring are initiatives which
state lawmakers are bringing all across the country, including here in my
beloved Bluegrass, which will more strictly define for what purposes the law of
eminent domain can be applied, so that future abuses of it can be stopped before
they ever get started.
What a refreshing story in this day and age of greed, gluttony and corporate
scandal! A banker who truly is looking out for the little guy. Who would have
expected such a move to come from one of the 10 largest asset-holding banks in
the industry?
We, the American public, are the ones who are being victimized by this turning
of the Constitution on its head! We, the American public, are the ones losing
our property to a greedy government who has shown that it obviously cares about
us but little! We, the American public, are the ones being forced out in order
to make way for greedy local governments to line their pocketbooks! So we, the
American public, are the ones who have to do something about it!
What we, as a powerful block with a powerful voice, need to do, is to force
other banking institutions to follow the trail being blazed by BB&T. I propose
that all of us, EVERY SINGLE ONE, make a statement of our own. I say we all move
our accounts and other assets to citizen-friendly, Constitution-friendly banks!
There can be little doubt that if these other financial institutions start
seeing their customers moving billions of dollars out of their banks in protest
of eminent domain abuse that they, too, will begin to change their minds about
where their loyalties lie. It WILL work! Money talks!
In fact, the "other" Golden Rule (you know, he who has the gold makes the rules)
was proven again just this week. Just the other day I reported to you that NBC
had canceled the distasteful show, The Book of Daniel, because its sponsors were
dropping like flies. All because WE, the American public, took a stand and told
them they would lose billions of consumer dollars if they continued to sponsor
such filth.
I firmly believe that if it worked in the case of Daniel, it will work in the
case of reverse Robin Hood. Until the government does its job and starts looking
out for us, we are going to have to look out for ourselves. To date, this is the
best way I have seen to affect a change in the stealing of private property
through this bastardization of eminent domain. Spread the word!
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