Local governments have traditionally been in charge of local zoning. Local governments are obviously closest to zoning issues, and having zoning issues resolved at the local level allows the local citizens to have a voice in zoning decisions. There is nothing in the U.S. Constitution that gives the federal government any control of zoning. However, right now we have a President who does not seem to have read the U.S. Constitution. President Obama wants to tell all of us where we can live.

The National Review posted an article today about President Obama’s new rule:

Safely past the hurdles of re-election and the mid-terms, President Obama has plenty of time and scope left to continue his transformative ways. Obama’s sweeping new rule, “Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing” (AFFH), is up next. AFFH would override local zoning authority and expand federal control over where and how Americans live. Because of its sweeping impact and the fact that potential Clinton Vice-Presidential running mate, HUD Secretary Julian Castro, will be in charge of implementation, this issue has the potential to shift the terrain of the presidential race as well.

…Contrary to its title, AFFH isn’t about blocking housing discrimination. That is already illegal, and former HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan acknowledged that AFFH is not about stopping housing discrimination, but instead about changing the way Americans live. AFFH will force every municipality that takes federal housing money to take a detailed survey of where its citizens live, by income, race, ethnicity, etc. If the mixture is not to the federal government’s liking, changes would have to be made at local expense. In effect, this would strip local governments of their zoning power.

The Republicans in Congress need to stop this power grab in its tracks. There have been a lot of talk about gerrymandering and the impact it has on elections. Gerrymandering will seem like a walk in the park when voters are told where they can live and where they can’t live.

There is an additional article from August 2013 on the government’s plan to take over local zoning at the National Review. This plan looks a lot like Agenda 21. For those of you not familiar with Agenda 21, it is a sustainable development plan developed by the United Nations at a meeting in Brazil in 1992. Basically it means the end of single-family homes and the concept of private property. It also has a very negative impact on American sovereignty.