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Amendment declares that private property may not
be “taken for public use without just compensation.”
The Supreme Court’s Kelo decision undermined this
safeguard by allowing local governments to seize
a person’s home or land not only for vital public use,
but also for “public purpose,” which thus allowed
the government to seize it for transfer to private
developers or other private entities. We call on any
state legislatures that have not already done so to
nullify the impact of Kelo within their jurisdiction
by legislation or state constitutional amendments
declaring that private property may be taken only
for true public use, and we join House Republicans
in supporting the Private Property Rights Protection
Act.
The government at every level must always
pay just compensation whenever it takes private
property to achieve a compelling public use, with
the money coming from the budget of the agency
performing the taking. This includes the taking
of water rights and the taking of property by
environmental regulations that destroy or diminish
the property’s value.
Civil asset forfeiture was originally intended
as a way to cripple organized crime through the
seizure of property used in a criminal enterprise.
Regrettably, it has become a tool for unscrupulous
law enforcement officials, acting without due
process, to profit by destroying the livelihood of
innocent individuals, many of whom never recover
the lawful assets taken from them. When the rights
of the innocent can be so easily violated, no one’s
rights are safe. We call on Congress and state
legislatures to enact reforms to protect law-abiding
citizens against abusive asset forfeiture tactics.
The Fifth Amendment:
Intellectual Property Rights
Private property includes not only physical
property such as lands and homes, but also
intellectual property like books and patents. Article
1, section 8 of the Constitution gives Congress the
power to safeguard intellectual property rights
for “Authors and Inventors.” By protecting the
proprietary rights of creators and innovators, the
Constitution promotes the general welfare by
providing incentives for investment in all sorts of
technology and artistic works. Intellectual property
is a driving force in today’s global economy of
constant innovation. It is the wellspring of American
economic growth and job creation. With the rise
of the digital economy, it has become even more
critical that we protect intellectual property rights
and preserve freedom of contract rather than
create regulatory barriers to creativity, growth, and
innovation.
Protecting intellectual property is also a
national security issue. We must guard against
counterfeit parts that can compromise the
reliability of our weapons systems and the safety
of military personnel. Today, the worst offenses
against intellectual property rights come from
abroad, especially in China. We call for strong
action by Congress and a new Republican president
to enforce intellectual property laws against all
infringers, whether foreign or domestic.
The Ninth Amendment:
The People’s Retained Rights
The Ninth Amendment to the Constitution
declares that “[t]he enumeration in the Constitution
of certain rights shall not be construed to deny
or disparage others retained by the people.” This
provision codifies the principle that our national
government derives its power from the governed
and that all powers not delegated to the government
are retained by the people. We call upon legislators
to give full force to this fundamental principle.
We welcome to our ranks all citizens who are
determined to reclaim the rights of the people that
have been ignored or usurped by the federal and
intrusive state governments.
The Tenth Amendment: Federalism
as the Foundation of Personal Liberty
Federalism is a cornerstone of our constitutional
system. Every violation of state sovereignty by
federal officials is not merely a transgression of one
unit of government against another; it is an assault
on the liberties of individual Americans. Hence the
promise of the Tenth Amendment: “The powers not
delegated to the United States by the Constitution,
nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to
the States respectively, or to the people.” The
Constitution gives the federal government very
few powers, and they are specifically enumerated;
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