Georgians have a little left from what our Founders gave us. Sadly, much of our inheritance has been frittered away by politicians who claim to be conservative protectors of the Constitution they declared to protect and preserve.

While "the consent of the governed" has been victimized in one after another attempts to secretly skirt the light of day in cases like the infamous land grab bill, SB 5, voices of constitutional principle such as the Georgia Heritage Council have forced a retrieval to more appropriate measures.

This is all about a decision by the U. S. Supreme Court, the Kelo Decision, from which a majority of one justice defined a method for government to claim private property for private use in contravention to the Constitution which has always limited Eminent Domain to legal land acquisition for essential public use.

The decision by the Supreme Court left a opportunity for states to enact Constitutional Amendments that defined or restricted what property could be legally seized by the state.

Many states have enacted such an amendment, others, including Georgia, have the question pending for upcoming elections where the people still have the right of "consent of the governed" as opposed to the legislature where more than 70% of the seats are not even contested in the same November election as permeated by Georgia's ancient incumbent protection laws.

Unfortunately, it's not as constitutionally clean as the Perdue administration and the Republican majority in the legislature would like to have you believe.

Let's examine the proposed amendment. The champion for a strict Eminent Domain Amendment in the Georgia Senate is Senator Jeff Chapman (R) of St. Simons. He prepared and had on its way to passage a protective amendment that would clarify constitutional protections in the taking of land in Georgia.

Then, some strange things happened behind the scenes, which shouldn't surprise anyone familiar with the current legislature where the unexpected is expected. Senator Chapman was removed as the mentor of the Eminent Domain Constitutional Amendment and in his place, Governor Sonny Perdue took control and guided a completely different proposed amendment through the legislative process. This is the same governor who told a group of conservatives (me among them) that he doesn't interfere with the legislative process. He was selectively speaking of the referendum on the state flag.

The proposed amendment that emerged is not the strict construction of the Constitution that Senator Chapman proposed. While it does define rigorous steps which must be taken to take land it does provide a way for developers to do just that in partnership with a benevolent government. It does indeed provide a path to take private land and allow it to be filtered through government for private use and profit. And of course, there are still bills pending to enable governments to "partner" with developers SECRETLY behind closed doors for the purpose of such land grabs.

Please check out our commentaries on Commutarianism and its growing popularity among a certain sect of Republicans.

The question all of us should be considering is WHY was Senator Chapman unceremoniously removed from the leadership of this amendment? Even more important, why was it necessary to have the governor himself, rather than Senate leaders, guide this legislation through the process. I think I have a pretty good answer to that question. Perhaps you're ahead of me when you consider some other land related ventures from which the governor has unquestionably personally profited.

The next question you need to consider is whether we the people consent to this Constitutional Amendment in its present form, or do we want to turn it down and send it back to the legislature and give Jeff Chapman another chance to protect our Constitution? Maybe this time without interference from the governor who "never involves himself in legislative matters."

No wonder a journalist described the official Georgia state sign as "Sonny Lies."

Lest you feel your rights have totally gone, just one fourth of you, yes, 25% plus one, voting against this amendment can reinforce those sacred words "consent of the governed". Vote "NO" to force the legislature to address Eminent Domain again.

For further information on the land grab business, I commend the current article by Phyllis Schlafly to your attenton.

Jeff Davis is a retired radio-TV journalist living in Gainesville, GA. Active in civic and political affairs, he is past president of the Georgia Jaycees, former vice president of the US and the world Jaycees, former campaign chairman of the Georgia Republican party. He voluntarily serves as chairman of the Georgia Heritage Council. He is a collateral descendant of President Jefferson Davis.

Related Links
Conservatives on the march for private property rights - Phyllis Schlafly

It Ain't Over til it's Over – J.A. Davis

Stranger Things have happened – J.A. Davis

James Madison and the citizen's informed consent – Steve Scroggins

SONNY LIED: the Official Georgia State Sign - X-Files

Shady Sonny's Secrecy Forecast – X-Files

Sonny LIED to US - sonnyLIED2.us – the website

Sonnygate? - Perdue, O'Neal caught with britches down – Steven Harrell

Boss Sonny Did! – X-Files

SONNY DID – Luckovich cartoon

Perdue quip about tax break draws Democratic criticism – AP

How tax law saved Perdue $100,000 – ajc.com

Liberty Lost (part 3) - J.A. Davis