The 2020 census is being ‘sabotaged,’ says leading U.S. statistician

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Oct 17, 2020, 2:50 PM UTC

rc_mob wrote: post #66

Retric wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It might not be close to 50:50 but it’s not 95:5. Less tainted is still tainted. When I say both sides, I mean both sides. Gerrymandering to give minorities districts for example does the same thing to undermine people’s faith in the system. The goal should be to outlaw gerrymandering not find some way to allow it to be useful politically. Should people in DC maintain the right to vote? IMO they should, but it’s beco…

Sure. But point is saying “both sides” right now is a harmful thing to say. The current Republican party is doing far more damage to democracy than any other in recent memory.

Post by WarOnPrivacy » Sat, Oct 17, 2020, 2:51 PM UTC

TheAdamAndChe wrote: post #93

kevinmchugh wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The constitution never said to count the people who vote. If you wanted to know that, just count how many people vote.

The constitution also doesn't preclude counting who is able to vote. The constitution places limits on the government, but we can add things that act within those bounds. Asking about citizenship falls within those bounds.

Post by eganist » Sat, Oct 17, 2020, 2:52 PM UTC

NelsonMinar wrote: post #142

woo49 wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s not as simple. Essentially the vote of two US citizens does not count equally if you count everyone. If one lives in an area with more illegal immigrants, that US citizens votes foe him/her but also for the non voters in the area. This is not a ‘one person one vote’ situation and it’s a real concern if you believe in equal representation. Ideally you’d have a citizenship question and you count only citizens for…

Elected officials represent all the constituents in their district, not just the citizens. Are you mad that the census counts children too? They don't vote either. Would you favor the census skipping children? Should the census count people who don't regularly vote? How about felons denied the right to vote? People judged too mentally incompetent to vote? Just who all are you willing to not count?

Post by minitoar » Sat, Oct 17, 2020, 2:53 PM UTC

Auracle wrote: post #128

ComputerGuru wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But that’s the whole point of the census. I agree Democrats wouldn’t care if it weren’t politically beneficial, but in this case their interest and the law coincide. Everyone, legal resident or not, should be counted. There’s zero legal /constitutional question about it. If you’re going to get angry every time someone does the right thing for the wrong reasons, I am afraid you’re in for a lifetime of disappointment.…

If there wasn’t a constitutional question there wouldn’t be an upcoming Supreme Court case about it. And let’s be real - I find it pretty unlikely the constitution and 14th Amendment were written with massive amounts of illegal aliens being in the country in mind. Should we count tourists from other countries as well?

Post by NelsonMinar » Sat, Oct 17, 2020, 2:57 PM UTC

eganist wrote: post #145

NelsonMinar wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Elected officials represent all the constituents in their district, not just the citizens. Are you mad that the census counts children too? They don't vote either. Would you favor the census skipping children? Should the census count people who don't regularly vote? How about felons denied the right to vote? People judged too mentally incompetent to vote? Just who all are you willing to not count?

> Are you mad that the census counts children too? This is a good point. Should a district be penalized because their constituents chose to have more kids per family unit than others? Their voting power would go down in the interim, wouldn't it? Thanks for raising the argument - it does a good job of showing why tying the census to voting power is meaningless.