WASHINGTON — The 2020 census will ask respondents whether they are United States citizens, the Commerce Department announced Monday night, agreeing to a Trump administration request with highly charged political and social implications that many officials feared would result in a substantial undercount.
In a statement released Monday, the Commerce Department, which oversees the Census Bureau, said Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross had “determined that reinstatement of a citizenship question on the 2020 decennial census questionnaire is necessary to provide complete and accurate census block level data,” allowing the department to accurately measure the portion of the population eligible to vote.
But his decision immediately invited a legal challenge: Xavier Becerra, California’s attorney general, plans to sue the Trump administration over the decision, a spokeswoman for Mr. Becerra said late Monday.
Critics of the change and experts in the Census Bureau itself have said that, amid a fiery immigration debate, the inclusion of a citizenship question could prompt immigrants who are in the country illegally not to respond. That would result in a severe undercount of the population — and, in turn, faulty data for government agencies and outside groups that rely on the census. The effects would also bleed into the redistricting of the House and state legislatures in the next decade.
From a political point of view, wouldn't undercounting illegal immigrants hurt the GOP? It would remove a lot of population from Texas, Arizona and Florida plus all the smaller southern states, while California is the only big blue state that would be really hurt.
Depends on whether most of those would be voting Dem or Rep?From a political point of view, wouldn't undercounting illegal immigrants hurt the GOP? It would remove a lot of population from Texas, Arizona and Florida plus all the smaller southern states, while California is the only big blue state that would be really hurt.
Depends on whether most of those would be voting Dem or Rep?
Depends on whether most of those would be voting Dem or Rep?
I was wondering about thatIllegals don't vote.
It's not just between states, it's within states. Census data would likely be used to shift power even more disproportionately from urban to rural areas.
It seems that they'll never be satisfied until anybody who lives in a city is entirely disenfranchised. Because even though most people live there it's not Real Merica.
Aren't most undocumented immigrants in more rural areas for access to farm jobs?It's not just between states, it's within states. Census data would likely be used to shift power even more disproportionately from urban to rural areas.
These politicians in their games are failing to realize that a lot more than just house seats comes from the US census. That data is used to allocate all sorts of resources on the state and local level as well as for research purposes. They are basically saying "hey we don't mind medical researchers and public health specialists and civil engineers who will build your bridges and roads not having the best data to do their work"
Aren't most undocumented immigrants in more rural areas for access to farm jobs?
oh the horror of the government taking a census of CITIZENS for voting. on and FYI this has been asked in one form or another for a long time. its not new.
also why no outrage on race, sex, marital status. what does that matter to voting?
Why Jefferson, Madison and the Founders Enshrined the Census in our Constitution
The U.S. Constitution empowers the Congress to carry out the census in "such manner as they shall by Law direct" (Article I, Section 2). The Founders of our fledgling nation had a bold and ambitious plan to empower the people over their new government. The plan was to count every person living in the newly created United States of America, and to use that count to determine representation in the Congress.
Just add it to the ever growing list of things he doesn't understandIts unsurprising, despite the previous comments explaining it, that you don't understand the point of the census.
They won't be counted if they are hiding from the census takers. They might be hiding because they wouldn't trust the Dept. of Commerce not to share personal information of non-citizens (including last known address) with ICE.I didn't see where they were not going to count people that marked the census as a non citizen or where they didn't answer the question at all. I'm pretty sure they are still counted.
How many times have I caught you in this lie?Illegals don't vote.
Where does it say that immigrants, especially illegal ones, can't be counted?For those of you constantly bitching about following the constitution, it says census will count people living in the country not just citizens.
How many times have I caught you in this lie?
Yes they do, here's proof beyond any doubt........ a conviction. They find vote fraud every time they look for it.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/...viction-rosa-maria-ortega-20170211-story.html