Senate Democrats unite to block bill excluding illegal aliens from census
The pushback from Republicans comes in the wake of President Joe Biden's executive action in 2021, shortly after his inauguration, which mandated the Census Bureau to calculate state populations for congressional apportionment without considering the legal status of inhabitants.
In a unanimous decision, Senate Democrats blocked a legislative effort by Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) to exclude illegal immigrants from the national census count. This count plays a crucial role in determining the distribution of seats in the House of Representatives and the allocation of Electoral College votes.
The pushback comes in the wake of President Joe Biden's executive action in 2021, shortly after his inauguration, which mandated the Census Bureau to calculate state populations for congressional apportionment without considering the legal status of inhabitants.
The contested proposal, intended as an amendment to the Equal Representation Act introduced by Sen. Hagerty last month, sought to mandate the inclusion of a citizenship query in future censuses. This move would effectively omit non-U.S. citizens, encompassing individuals on temporary visas and those holding green cards, from influencing the apportionment of congressional districts and Electoral College votes.
The decennial census, a cornerstone of U.S. democracy, aims to provide a comprehensive snapshot of the nation's demographic landscape every 10 years, notes the Epoch Times.
The proposal was incorporated into the $460 billion government funding package approved last Saturday. However, it was defeated in a 45-51 vote, without garnering support from any Democrats.
On March 8, Sen. Hagerty issued a statement accusing Democrats of politically-motivated obstruction of the amendment, while affirming his commitment to continue advocating for the matter.
“Democrats’ unanimous opposition to this commonsense measure confirms that they’re using illegal aliens and sanctuary cities to increase their political power,” he said.
“With this vote, Senate Democrats chose to trample on the rights of each American’s voice. I will continue to fight and press this issue in the Senate,” Hagerty added.
The senator has previously levied similar accusations, contending that Democrats in sanctuary cities are welcoming undocumented immigrants into their jurisdictions with the aim of securing additional votes and enhanced representation in both the House and the Electoral College.
A sanctuary city restricts its cooperation with federal immigration law enforcement, affecting deportations and prosecutions. Currently, about 200 locations in the U.S., including New Orleans, New York City, and Washington, D.C., are designated as sanctuary cities.
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