TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ACTIONS COUNTER TO THE NATION'S FOUNDERS

…The Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross

 

Trump administration wants to use the census citizenship question for vile purposes.

 

I continue to wonder just how stupid the Trump administration thinks the voting American public is today?

 

Back in 1950, the Census Bureau made a critical decision that coincided with what our founding fathers had decided in the 1770’s.  That being that even back then, in Article I, Section 2 of the US Constitution, it states: Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the States according to their respective Numbers.  The first census was taken three years after the first meeting of the US Congress and then with every subsequent term of ten Years.  Today, the United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is responsible for the United States Census.  But initially the census was taken by US Marshalls.

 

 

You will notice that the founding fathers did not require that the census was to be taken of US citizens, or of US citizen and immigrants, or of US citizens, immigrants and even slaves. The census was to understand how many people were living in each state for determining the number of required representatives and so that tax revenues could be distributed according to the information derived from the census…..period. 

 

At some time after the census was started, the question about citizenship was in included the questionnaire.  But in 1950, it was decided that there was no need to know that information because that was not the stated reason for the census.  The bureau also did not want those non-citizens taking the census to be concerned about their position of not being a citizen.   The decision was then made to go back to what the founders had wanted and that was only to acquire the accurate numbers of the overall population.

 

The reason for the 1950 decision was that when that question of citizenship was a part of the census questions, not all immigrants were cooperative respondents. Those who were undocumented were undercounted in previous censuses and they were also more likely to incorrectly report themselves as US citizens.

 

The Trump administration’s anti-immigrant rhetoric and policy has increased mistrust among all immigrants, not just those who are undocumented. During focus group interviews conducted by the Census Bureau roughly six months into Trump’s presidency, immigrants appeared anxious and reluctant to cooperate with Census Bureau interviewers.

 

The Census Bureau mentioned immigrants fears of deportation, the elimination of DACA, a “Muslim ban” and ICE raids. One respondent actually walked out when the questionnaire turned to the topic of citizenship, leaving the interviewer alone in the immigrant's apartment. Respondents even omitted or gave false names on household rosters to avoid “registering” with the Census Bureau. Interviewers remarked that it was much easier to collect data on immigration and citizenship before Trump became president.

 

 

It’s not yet clear whether the fears seen in the focus group interviews are as widespread as suspected, or how such fears would affect response rates if the citizenship question were added to the 2020 census. Additionally, researchers haven’t yet worked out a way to ask the citizenship question so it’s not perceived as a threat.

 

Unfortunately, there really isn't enough time to find out. A finalized questionnaire must be submitted to Congress by the end of next March..

 

But it must be understood how important the census as a set of information.  Today, to refuse or neglect to answer the census is punishable by fines of $100.  For a census agent to fail to provide correct names for the census is punishable by fines of $500.  For a census agent to provide false answers for the census is punishable by fines of $10,000..

 

Just last week, the Trump administration’s decision to add the question about citizenship in the 2020 Census was met with fierce pushback from its critics.  A number of the states have already launched a legal and political battle in a fight that pits the administration against many Democratically run states, and more are expected to join in.

 

The latest decision by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, has already triggered legal challenges from California and New York, with the latter promising a “multi-state” lawsuit challenging the administration. 

 

Democratic lawmakers, stand to lose political power if undocumented immigrants decline to take part in the decennial survey, but there is little they can do to immediately counter the move.

 

The confrontation becomes another key factor hanging in the balance in the upcoming midterm elections, with Democrats gaining considerable leverage to scrap the census decision about citizenship, should they win control of either chamber.

Critics of the Commerce Department’s move said it is an on-going pattern of attacks by the Trump administration against Democratic states on issues from health care to immigration.  Particularly with major concerns for decisions such as how congressional districts are drawn and how federal funding is spent nationwide.

 

“We’re talking about a decade of consequences,” Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), who has introduced legislation trying to block the Census Bureau from asking about citizenship. “There’s few things you can put your finger on directly that has a decade of consequences — in this case, a pejorative consequence.”

 

“I would argue that this has been the practice of the United States government,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said when pressed on the decision. “The purpose is to determine individuals that are here. It also helps to comply with the Voting Rights Act. Without that information, it’s hard to make those determinations.”

 

However, the press secretary was once again, spouting mis-information with that statement.  It has nothing to do with complying with the Voting Rights Act.

 

Critics of the decision, including California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, were bullish on the prospects of winning their legal challenge, noting that the Constitution requires a census, or “actual enumeration,” every 10 years to apportion representation in Congress, based on the “number of free persons” in each state.  To do that, there is no need to know if a person is, or is not, a citizen.

 

Democrats are pressuring their GOP counterparts to conduct more oversight of the Commerce department’s decision. Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (MD), the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, called for hearings on the issue.

In an attempt to minimize any impact on response rates, the Commerce department directed the Census Bureau to place the citizenship question last on the census form. But critics of the plan say that making substantive changes to the decennial survey this late in the cycle is unprecedented. 

 

The administration is almost certain to face even more legal challenges. Former US Attorney General, Eric H. Holder Jr., who serves as chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, is threatening a law suit to halt the decision. And Dale Ho, the director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s Voting Rights Project, said his organization is evaluating all options.

 

If Congress and the administration were to provide additional funding at this late date to test the effect of a citizenship question on response rate, they would definitely would not like the results they get.

Stay tuned for the results on this one.  It’s obvious that the Trump administration wants to use this question for purposes that are totally against what the founding fathers had in mind for the taking of the US census.

 

Copyright G.Ater  2018