census

How many people will be living in the United States on April 1, 2020?

Mailings the Republican National Committee sent to Montana and Missouri residents have riled officials there, prompting one House Democrat to call for an investigation into fundraising solicitations he says are designed to confuse people about the decennial census.

Styled as the “2019 Congressional District Census,” the mailing includes a questionnaire and letter from RNC Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel soliciting a donation of up to $1,000. But the mailings are likely to confuse residents before the start of next year’s census, argued Democratic Rep. William Lacy Clay of Missouri.

Census officials on Monday defended plans for next year’s count that they said would make it the “most efficient ever," as Democrats pressed the bureau to do more to ensure hard-to-count populations are not overlooked.

The latest salvo from Democrats came from members of the Illinois congressional delegation, led by Richard J. Durbin, the Senate minority whip, and Sen. Tammy Duckworth, along with the rest of the state’s Democratic representatives. In a letter, they urged greater investment in outreach like Questionnaire Assistance Centers to avoid missing minorities, children, rural residents and the urban poor.

The House will “soon” vote to hold Attorney General William Barr and Commerce Secretary William Ross in contempt of Congress for defying subpoenas for documents explaining the administration’s rationale for wanting to add a citizenship question to the census, Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote in a “Dear Colleague” letter on Monday.

The Oversight and Reform Committee last month approved a contempt resolution against Barr and Ross that included language to refer the matter to the U.S. attorney in Washington for possible criminal charges, as well as authorize the pursuit of a lawsuit.

President Donald Trump, departing the White House on Friday for a weekend at his New Jersey country club, celebrated the “fantastic evening” he had saluting the country during a July 4 speech from the National Mall, while facing questions about his controversial immigration policies. 

Many Democrats criticizing  Trump’s Independence Day celebration cited the poor optics of a military showcase amid reports of mistreatment of migrants being held at facilities along the border as they await their asylum claims to be processed. But Trump, speaking to reporters outside of the White House Friday before boarding Marine One, said he thinks Customs and Border Patrol agents who run many of the  shelters where migrants are held “do a great job with those facilities.”

Two states that have the most on the line in the Supreme Court case over the citizenship question in the 2020 census are taking drastically different approaches to the decennial count next year.

New York and Texas could have the biggest swings in congressional representation after the 2020 census. New York is projected to lose two seats, and Texas could gain as many as three, according to forecasting by the nonpartisan consulting firm Election Data Services. 

The Justice Department on Wednesday asserted executive privilege over documents tied to the probe into the addition of the citizenship question to the 2020 census, as the House Oversight and Reform Committee neared a vote to hold Attorney General William Barr and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in contempt.

Chairman Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, D-Maryland, said he would hold the vote on contempt later in the day to allow members of the panel time to read the administration's responses. Democrats claim the question would suppress noncitizen participation and be used to draw Republican-favored maps, despite the administration’s argument that it is needed to enforce the Voting Rights Act.

The Census Bureau is currently without a printer, less than two years before the national head count begins. That has left the Government Publishing Office to accept new bids for the 2020 census printing contract until Sept 10, after previously awarding the contract to a company that has since filed for bankruptcy.

The GPO intends to award the replacement printing and mailing contract in November. This timeline “will ensure there is no negative effect on the 2020 Printing and Mailing Operation or the overall 2020 Census,” according to a Census Bureau statement earlier this month.

Population trends are working against the Republican Party — at least that’s what we’ve been told.

But a combination of the 2016 presidential results and early looks at reapportionment after the 2020 census shows that the short-term changes may not be as dramatic as once believed.