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The census and slavery: Why we count people, not citizens
The Chicago Sun-Times ^ | July 2, 2019 | Derek Litvak

Posted on 07/02/2019 8:59:42 AM PDT by PBRCat

For most Americans, the census is something none of us really think about, for good reason.

It doesn’t come around but once every ten years, and then it’s gone again. Besides a few stories on the changing demographics of the country, and possible changes in the number of representatives any given state is allotted, the census is usually in the back of many people’s minds.

That, however, changed with the arrival of the Trump administration. Seemingly out of nowhere it was announced the 2020 Census would be modified in a simultaneously subtle and monumental fashion. Wilbur Ross, the Secretary of Commerce, announced in 2018 the next census would include a question asking for respondents’ citizenship status. Almost immediately the potential question was met with a bevy of criticism, support and lawsuits. Opinion

Those lawsuits culminated last week in the Supreme Court handing down a decision in the citizenship census case.

States with heavy immigrant populations, which also coincidentally happen to be strongholds for the Democratic Party, would likely lose seats in Congress, funding, and a host of other things as a result of their “official” population lowering.

The fear, by many immigrants, is certainly well founded, considering the president of the United States opened his campaign with violently racist remarks against immigrants, and his administration has made it a point to manufacture a humanitarian crisis on the southern border.

(Excerpt) Read more at chicago.suntimes.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Editorial; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: aliens; census; citizenship; electionfraud; fakenews; immigration; reapportionment; voterfraud
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To: PBRCat
Florida wants to count the ‘non-citizens’ at Disney World and our other Theme parks... Yeah, people from other countries are there - not for long - but the Supreme Court didn't draw a distinction between foreigners here one day of 600 days.
21 posted on 07/02/2019 9:17:24 AM PDT by GOPJ (Democrats "a party that makes. Americans feel like strangers in their own country. NYT)
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To: Yo-Yo

They were legal residents. Reisdent aliens were also counted. Indians were not.

The counting served as the basis for BOTH representation AND taxation, which was appropriated among the states (up until the income tax) according to the census results.

Only relatively recently (I’d guess 60 years ago, but I’m sure there are three dozen people on the forum who can quote the cases, and hundreds more who could look it up, some of whom have more time than I,) did the Supreme Court really get into details on how states doled out their Federal seats, as well as the state legislature seats. Many state legislatures started off with an upper chamber that was not primarily tied to population—not unlike the federal senate.


22 posted on 07/02/2019 9:17:33 AM PDT by Hieronymus ("I shall drink--to the Pope, if you please,-still, to Conscience first, and to the Pope afterwards.")
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To: cuban leaf
Yes. The Left almost always relies on Misdirection: Familiar Leftist Tactic.

By focusing on the irrelevant, they skate around the fact that they have very very few rational arguments.

23 posted on 07/02/2019 9:17:44 AM PDT by Ohioan
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To: PBRCat
Florida wants to count the ‘non-citizens’ at Disney World and our other Theme parks... Yeah, people from other countries are there - not for long - but the Supreme Court didn't draw a distinction between foreigners here one day of 600 days.

Not saying it's Mickey Mouse or anything...

24 posted on 07/02/2019 9:17:48 AM PDT by GOPJ (Democrats "a party that makes. Americans feel like strangers in their own country. NYT)
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To: odawg

No, the reason the US chamber, neocons and places like iowa and Nebraska want open borders is for cheap labor.


25 posted on 07/02/2019 9:18:54 AM PDT by DesertRhino (Dog is man's best friend, and moslems hate dogs. Add that up. ....)
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To: pgyanke

The census also determines the number of electors for the presidential election.


26 posted on 07/02/2019 9:19:01 AM PDT by Sacajaweau
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To: SeekAndFind

Because...uh...Trump...uh...Orange man....uh...Why are you racist?


27 posted on 07/02/2019 9:19:25 AM PDT by Magnum44 (My comprehensive terrorism plan: Hunt them down and kill them.)
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To: Yo-Yo

As a Lib to explain the 3/5ths Clause regarding Slaves in the Constitution that they always vilify to push their narrative.

They use that number all the time in belittling the Founders of our Nation yet they have no concept that the final draft of our Constitution required negotiating between different factions to Unite the States to form our Union.


28 posted on 07/02/2019 9:19:31 AM PDT by Kickass Conservative (THEY LIVE, and we're the only ones wearing the Sunglasses.)
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To: PBRCat
So DemocRATS can cheat, and flood the elections with "Provisional Ballots" .
29 posted on 07/02/2019 9:19:57 AM PDT by Yosemitest (It's SIMPLE ! ... Fight, ... or Die !)
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It’s all to help the Democrats.


30 posted on 07/02/2019 9:20:18 AM PDT by TakebackGOP
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To: PBRCat

>> States with heavy immigrant populations, which also coincidentally happen to be strongholds for the Democratic Party, would likely lose seats in Congress,

Heavy illegal immigrant populations....

The Democrat Thug Party’s critical support base —not the American citizen.


31 posted on 07/02/2019 9:20:50 AM PDT by Gene Eric (Don't be a statist!)
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To: Yo-Yo
Unless I’m mistaken, at the writing of the Constitution the slaves that were counted may not have been citizens,

You may recall the they were only four fifths a person for the very reason they would change the representation power of Southern States.

32 posted on 07/02/2019 9:21:03 AM PDT by itsahoot (Welcome to the New USA where Islam is a religion of peace and Christianity is a mental disorder.)
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To: rigelkentaurus

It also, depending on how you view it, increased (or decreased) taxation.


33 posted on 07/02/2019 9:21:05 AM PDT by Hieronymus ("I shall drink--to the Pope, if you please,-still, to Conscience first, and to the Pope afterwards.")
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To: PBRCat
The census and slavery: Why we count people, not citizens,

Because criminal degenerates are people, too!

34 posted on 07/02/2019 9:21:07 AM PDT by Navy Patriot (America NEEDS Mob Rule, another European and Mid East World War and a universal Draft)
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To: PBRCat

Slaves were counted because the Constitution required it for purposes of apportioning representation in Congress. There is no constitutional argument for counting illegal aliens.


35 posted on 07/02/2019 9:21:11 AM PDT by NRx (A man of honor passes his father's civilization to his son without surrendering it to strangers.)
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To: itsahoot
four fifths

oops three fifths.

36 posted on 07/02/2019 9:22:48 AM PDT by itsahoot (Welcome to the New USA where Islam is a religion of peace and Christianity is a mental disorder.)
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To: Sacajaweau
When our country started

When our country started it wasn't a country, it was a confederation.

37 posted on 07/02/2019 9:24:44 AM PDT by itsahoot (Welcome to the New USA where Islam is a religion of peace and Christianity is a mental disorder.)
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To: PBRCat

The goal with counting illegal aliens in the census is the same as that for counting the slaves - artificially increasing the representation of those who benefit from the subjected status of those illegals/slaves.


38 posted on 07/02/2019 9:25:35 AM PDT by Yashcheritsiy (I'd rather have one king 3000 miles away that 3000 kings one mile away)
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To: PBRCat

Trump wasn’t discounting aliens, he was simply asking if them if they were in the country legally.

If someone with a PhD can’t discern the difference, they should lose their cushy position at the University.


39 posted on 07/02/2019 9:25:37 AM PDT by Tzimisce
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To: PBRCat

The fact that the Obama Administration removed the citizenship question in 2010 is not mentioned, because it destroys his argument. It was removed because it provided a political advantage to the Democrats and supported their open borders strategy. They wanted to hide illegal aliens and eventually, enable the Democrats to register them to vote.

This was obvious to the Republicans and they resolved to return it to the Census when they returned to power. The Constitutional issue was settled by the Supreme Court. The question is Constitutional and the Secretary of Commerce has the power to decide the matter. We have been stymied by a process foul revolving around something called the Administrative Process Act (APA). It’s a speed bump and will be overcome. The Democrats are hoping that they can delay until it’s too late for 2020, but I think that Trump still has some arrows in his quivver.


40 posted on 07/02/2019 9:25:48 AM PDT by centurion316
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