Supreme Court is skeptical of Trump's plan to exclude the undocumented from the census

WASHINGTON. — President Donald Trump tried to get the Census to exclude, for the first time in its history, undocumented immigrants from the designation of seats in Congress, but on Monday the Supreme Court, under conservative control, was skeptical about the judicial future of this measure by the outgoing Administration. 

During a 90-minute telephone hearing, the nine justices heard oral arguments in

and both the six conservatives and the three progressives expressed skepticism on two key issues: the urgency of issuing an opinion, and the legality of excluding irregular immigrants.

For the conservative judge, Samuel Alito, the idea of ​​marginalizing the nearly 11 million undocumented immigrants seemed "a monumental task", while he questioned whether it is a "realistic" plan, taking into account the little time he has left. to the Trump Administration.

For her part, the conservative judge, Amy Coney Barrett, recently appointed by Trump, pointed out that the Census had never before excluded undocumented immigrants, and that, in her opinion, weakens the government's position.

It is not a mere debate on semantics, because if an undocumented immigrant has been in the United States for 20 years, "why wouldn't he have an established residence?" Barrett asked about the definition of "inhabitant."

During the hearing, attorney Dale Ho of the Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) argued that undocumented immigrants have extensive community ties, pay taxes, and contribute to economic growth.

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For her part, New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood stated that, far from being "invisible," undocumented immigrants have been living in their communities for many years and their irregular status "does not erase their presence."

Underwood stressed that the Census stipulates the accounting of every person in the country, not a system of "rewards and punishments" that the Administration seeks according to the collaboration of each state to stop illegal immigration. 

The case reached the Supreme Court after three lower courts in California, Maryland and New York declared illegal the so-called "exclusion memorandum" issued by Trump on July 21 to exclude the undocumented population from the 2020 Census. .

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His goal is for the Census Bureau to give him a report with the population count in each state, and another that would subtract the number of undocumented immigrants from the total for the distribution of seats.

California, one of the states with a high percentage of illegal immigration, would lose at least two seats in the Lower House.

Under the logic of the Trump administration, some states with a conservative tendency and a high concentration of irregular immigrants, such as Arizona, Florida and Texas, would also lose seats.

But the census did not include a question on citizenship, so the Administration will rely on administrative files and general data from the forms to try to determine the undocumented population and how many and whom to exclude, explained Jeffrey Wall, a government attorney.

"Census experts confirmed to me that they still don't even know how many illegal immigrants they will be able to identify, or how their number and geographic concentration would affect the designation of seats," Wall admitted.

It is estimated that the Trump Administration currently has data and files on at least four million undocumented immigrants.

Among the possible scenarios, the Census Bureau could issue its population report within the established deadline, but it could be challenged in court.

If the Trump Administration excludes undocumented immigrants, the House of Representatives could reject its incomplete report, leaving the task to the incoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden.  

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The

tamen would affect the entire country

In its memorandum, the Trump Administration has argued that it has the authority to define who are "inhabitants" or "residents" in the United States, and what data to use for the appointment of new electoral seats in the Lower House.

In addition, according to the federal government, people who live in the country on temporary visas -such as diplomats, foreign businessmen, or tourists- are not included in the calculation of seats.

Under the Constitution, the United States has conducted a census every 10 years since 1790, regardless of the legal or immigration status of its inhabitants, and their national origin.

In fact

and not on the number of eligible voters or the legal status of its inhabitants.

Although Trump will leave power on January 20, an opinion in his favor would reduce political representation in the House of Representatives and in the Electoral College to communities with high percentages of undocumented immigrants, who would also lose millionaire public funds for various social programs.

The Supreme Court received more than 25 documents against the government, including prominent academics, civic and business groups, state and local governments, and public officials.

In that sense, Deni Taveras, Democratic councilman of Prince George's County, in Maryland, pointed out that the distribution of 800,000 million dollars in public funds is at stake.

"

" with or without papers, Taveras said during a conference call organized by CASA de Maryland.

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By law, the Census Bureau has to deliver the population count on December 31, and the Trump Administration, in turn, has to deliver a report to Congress a week after the new legislative session begins.

Later, Congress would have two weeks to certify the number of seats that corresponds to each electoral district in the states.

The COVID-19 pandemic affected the operations of the Census Bureau, especially home visits that did not respond to forms online or by mail.

Wall acknowledged that the Census Bureau may not be able to deliver the report by the established deadline.