Docs: Trump Tried to Use Census Citizenship for Political Gain

JUL 21 2022·Updated FEB 8 2024

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Image credit: Getty Images [via The Hill]

The Facts

The US House oversight committee on Wed. released documents showing that former Pres. Trump tried to add a citizenship question to the census to allegedly affect the assignment of congressional seats and the electoral college.
NPR
The documents, gathered from internal communications and memos between political appointees at the Commerce and Justice depts., stem from a multi-year committee investigation previously delayed by the Trump admin.
The New York Times
Former Trump Commerce Sec., Wilbur Ross, reportedly pushed to add the question despite knowing its potential illegality, with commerce officials leaving out key details in a 2017 draft memo.
The Hill
Ross had argued that adding the question would help the DOJ enforce the Voting Rights Act, with opponents saying it would deter immigrants from voting. The Supreme Court later ruled the question unconstitutional.
New York Daily News
The census, which is used to allocate federal funds, has excluded the citizenship question since 1950. The US is also home to 22M immigrants.
The New York Times

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The Spin

Pro-Trump narrative

The Trump admin. never violated any laws in seeking to add the citizenship question to the census. Even the SCOTUS ruling said Congress had the constitutional power to ask for such information and only disagreed with the Voting Rights Act piece. The government needs to know who is a citizen because that's who elected officials are tasked with protecting first and foremost.

The Heritage Foundation

Democratic narrative

The congressional committee and the Supreme Court have pushed back the Trump admin's brazen actions for good reason. Adding a citizenship question to the census clearly discriminates against minorities and foreign-born residents - groups that Republicans wish to attack because they overwhelmingly vote for Democrats.

New Yorker