Heading into the last quarter of Obama's presidency we heard time and time again that these two years would be the most dangerous for the Republic. His disdain for working with Congress, contempt for the Constitution, and propensity to act unilaterally would only be magnified in the remaining days of his term—after all, he’d go big because he’s going home.
Now that he's made everything from health care to immigration precipitously worse, next up on the list is an experiment in social engineering.
The Onion The Hill reports:
The Obama administration is moving forward with regulations designed to help diversify America’s wealthier neighborhoods, drawing fire from critics who decry the proposal as executive overreach in search of an “unrealistic utopia.”
A final Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rule due out this month is aimed at ending decades of deep-rooted segregation around the country.
The regulations would use grant money as an incentive for communities to build affordable housing in more affluent areas while also taking steps to upgrade poorer areas with better schools, parks, libraries, grocery stores and transportation routes as part of a gentrification of those communities.
“HUD is working with communities across the country to fulfill the promise of equal opportunity for all,” a HUD spokeswoman said. “The proposed policy seeks to break down barriers to access to opportunity in communities supported by HUD funds.”
As you can imagine, the list of critics among conservatives is lengthy. Among them is Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), who’s at the forefront of an effort in the House to block the regulations.
“American citizens and communities should be free to choose where they would like to live and not be subject to federal neighborhood engineering at the behest of an overreaching federal government,” he said.
Critics of the rule say it would allow HUD to assert authority over local zoning laws. The agency could dictate what types of homes are built where and who can live in those homes, said Gosar, who believes local communities should make those decisions for themselves rather than relying on the federal government.
If enacted, the rule could depress property values as cheaper homes crop up in wealthy neighborhoods and raise taxes, Gosar warned.
It could also tilt the balance of political power as more minorities are funneled into Republican-leaning neighborhoods, he suggested.
But we were warned, right?