July 12, 2005

Corker Silent on Kelo

Nearly three weeks since the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision in Kelo v. New London granting state and local governments the right to take private property and give it to another owner for any reason at all, former Chattanooga Mayor Bob Corker has remained publicly silent on the issue.

Corker is a wealthy real estate developer who as mayor of Chattanooga lead the city government in a redevelopment of the downtown riverfront, so you would think he would have good insight into the issues of private property rights, eminent domain, economic development and the Kelo decision. But as of today Corker is the only one of six candidates currently running for the U.S. Senate from Tennessee who has not issued a statement about Kelo.

His rivals for the Republican nomination - former congressman Ed Bryant and Van Hilleary and current state Rep. Beth Harwell - have all condemned the decision, as has Democratic state Sen. Rosalind Kurita. Current U.S. Rep. Harold Ford has come out both for and against the Kelo decision.