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Yesterday, the Supreme Court put the kibosh on the proposed 2020 census question that would have asked respondents about citizenship. In a wild Frankenstein’s Monster of an opinion, Chief Justice Roberts basically couldn’t convince himself to ignore all the damning “hey this is a pretext, don’t tell nobody” documents out there. The case was remanded but the bottom line was there’s really no way to put that question on the 2020 census.
In response, Trump said he’s asking for the census to be delayed:
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Seems totally ridiculous that our government, and indeed Country, cannot ask a basic question of Citizenship in a very expensive, detailed and important Census, in this case for 2020. I have asked the lawyers if they can delay the Census, no matter how long, until the…..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 27, 2019
Constitution nerds might remember that the census is one of those things mandated by the founding document that can’t be changed up on a whim by a president trying to find a way to drive down representation. In theory, someone will inform him of this fact and the census will go forward anyway.
But Professor Tribe thinks the mere ask could be an ominous sign:
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Is it just me, or does Trump ‘s idea of delaying the constitutionally mandated decennial census remind anyone else of delaying the constitutionally mandated quadrennial presidential election? https://t.co/mHSKc7xCDj
— Laurence Tribe ⚖️ (@tribelaw) June 27, 2019
While it’s hard to imagine that one would fly, there’s almost as much harm in asking the question than in getting the answer. If the country even starts joking about constitutional mandates becoming negotiable, then all sorts of unappetizing stuff lands on the table.
In one of the all-time greatest Simpsons songs — “I’m An Amendment To Be” — the anthropomorphic flag-burning amendment explains that “if we change the constitution…” and the boy responds “then we could make all sorts of crazy laws!” But if we don’t think we need amendments… or even statutes anymore. Hoo boy.
Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.