Rep. Ruben Gallego Statement on the Supreme Court Census Question Decision
WASHINGTON, DC – This morning, the Supreme Court issued a decision ruling that the Trump administration's explanation for the inclusion of a citizenship question on the 2020 census as "contrived," effectively preventing the question's inclusion in the survey. In response, President Trump tweeted his intent to "delay the Census, no matter how long" in order for the administration to come up with better reasons to include this harmful question on the 2020 Census.
Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) issued the following statement:
"I am glad the Supreme Court recognized today what has been clear to many Americans for months: the inclusion of a citizenship question on the 2020 Census was a political ploy by the Trump administration to disenfranchise black and brown communities in this country.
"The Census is a solemn constitutional obligation that we undertake every ten years to ensure that federal resources and political representation are fairly apportioned among Americans. A citizenship question would severely depress participation in this important survey in immigrant communities like those in my district, where fear and confusion has been sown by the Trump administration's inhumane immigration enforcement tactics.
"Attempting to delay the 2020 Census in order to include this partisan question, as the President has suggested, is not only unconstitutional but underscores the administration's political motivations. Even without a citizenship question, the 2010 Census failed to count 27,000 Latino children under 4 years old in Maricopa County – the second highest undercount of Latino kids in the nation. Under no circumstances can a citizenship question be included in the 2020 Census. The integrity and accuracy of the 2020 Census depend on it."