Press Releases

Today, the Chairs of the Congressional Tri-Caucus –Congressional Black Caucus Chair Karen Bass (CA-37), Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Joaquin Castro (TX-20), and Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Chair Judy Chu (CA-27) – released the following statement on recently uncovered documents from late-Republican strategist Thomas B. Hofeller and its implications on the Trump Administration’s inclusion of a citizenship question on the 2020 Census:

“These newly discovered documents clearly show the Trump Administration intended for the 2020 Census’ citizenship question to intimidate communities of color and silence us from participating in our democracy. Furthermore, throughout the legal fights since Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross’ decision to add the citizenship question, this Administration has intentionally lied to the American people and Congress about their dubious intentions for altering the Census. The proof of their motivation has come to light, and it demonstrates with incontrovertible evidence that this Administration is working to undermine the foundations of our government,” said the Tri-Caucus Chairs. “The results of the Census will change the course of our country for the next decade. It will decide how much federal funding communities receive, who is represented in Congress, and what kind of country the next generation inherits. This revelation proves that once again, President Trump and Republicans have prioritized their own political power over the American people. They are willing to use discriminatory and devious tactics to ensure a Republican majority. We will not allow them to intimidate our communities or exclude us from having a voice in our government. We still have time to stop this potentially devastating and unjustified decision. As the Supreme Court decides on this issue in the coming month, we will continue fighting to ensure that the Census is not made into a political weapon so that every American is counted.”

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus had previously called on Census Bureau Director Dr. Dillingham to discuss decisions by the Bureau that that could result in reduced participation among Hispanic communities and other communities of color, as well as what steps the Bureau will take to ensure that the 2020 Census includes a full and accurate count of every person living in the United States. Full text of the letter can be found here.