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Donald Trump has tried this before. During his first term in office, Trump demanded a new Census that would not count immigrants who are in the country illegally.
Trump’s second term is failing, so the president trotted out his dog whistle against brown people by demanding a new Census.
Trump posted on Truth Social:
I have instructed our Department of Commerce to immediately begin work on a new and highly accurate CENSUS based on modern day facts and figures and, importantly, using the results and information gained from the Presidential Election of 2024. People who are in our Country illegally WILL NOT BE COUNTED IN THE CENSUS. Thank you for your attention to this matter!
It takes years of planning and staffing to do a new Census. Trump can’t order one, and it appears like magic.
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) pointed out the bigger issue:
This is wholly unconstitutional. The Constitution mandates a census every ten years that counts every single person in the country, regardless of their citizenship status. When Trump tried to do this in 2020, the courts flat out rejected it.
Pew Research looked at what a new Census that doesn’t count people in the country illegally would look like and how it would impact elections, and their answer was that it would have minimal impact.
