The bill sponsored by the GOP, which aimed to prevent illegal aliens from being counted in the census, did not pass in the Democrat-controlled Senate. Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) proposed an amendment to the spending package, stating that the Census Bureau must include a citizenship question in all future censuses. The amendment also sought to exclude non-U.S. citizens from being counted for congressional district and Electoral College apportionment purposes.
The intention behind this proposal was not only to exclude legal immigrants with temporary visas and green cards but also to prevent the counting of illegal immigrants. This measure was a response to the significant increase in immigration after President Joe Biden reversed many of former President Donald Trump’s immigration and border security policies. The proposed legislation shares similarities with the Trump administration’s plan to include a citizenship question in the 2020 census.
However, Democrats and immigration organizations with left-leaning views criticized Trump’s initiative, claiming that it was illegal and designed to benefit Republicans in future elections. Lora Ries from The Heritage Foundation and R.J. Hauman, President of the National Immigration Center for Enforcement, collaborated on an essay highlighting the issue of “warped representation” in Congress, which ultimately favors Democrats.
“Barring the Census from including non-citizens in apportionment is critical in making sure that American citizens — the only population who can and should vote in U.S. elections — are picking America’s leaders,” Ries and Hauman wrote, point out that the crisis is “distorting the representation that states have in the House, and how many electoral votes they have in presidential elections.”
Hagerty’s proposition ultimately fell below expectations as it faced opposition from 51 Democrats and Independents who either voted against it or were not present. Furthermore, Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska also voted against the plan. Meanwhile, all remaining Republicans either supported the bill or were absent during the voting process. Consequently, the outcome resulted in a 51 to 45 vote against the proposal. In response to the unsuccessful vote, Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, expressed his reaction on his X platform.
“Most Americans do not know that the US census currently counts, for purposes of voting power, all people in a district, regardless of citizenship! Senate Democrats just voted unanimously to defeat an amendment that would have stopped counting illegals for congressional seat apportionment and electoral college (presidential) votes,” he wrote.
“Since illegals are mostly in Democrat states, both the House and the Presidential vote are shifted ~5% to the left, which is enough to change the entire balance of power! This is a major reason why the Biden administration is ushering in record levels of illegals and doing so few deportations,” he added.
Most Americans do not know that the US census currently counts, for purposes of voting power, all people in a district, regardless of citizenship!
Senate Democrats just voted unanimously to defeat an amendment that would have stopped counting illegals for congressional seat… https://t.co/5gXt4Z1wzP
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 9, 2024