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A4 U.S. NEWS
Wednesday 14 OctOber 2020
Supreme Court halts census in latest twist of 2020 count

By MIKE SCHNEIDER the court should require the
Associated Press Census Bureau to miss it.
The U.S. Supreme Court on With plans for the count
Tuesday stopped the once- hampered by the pan-
a-decade head count of demic, the Census Bureau
every U.S. resident from in April had proposed ex-
continuing through the end tending the deadline for
of October. finishing the count from the
President Donald Trump's end of July to the end of
administration had asked October and pushing the
the nation's high court to apportionment deadline
suspend a district court's from Dec. 31 to next April.
order permitting the 2020 The proposal to extend the
census to continue through apportionment deadline
the end of the month. The passed the Democratic-
Trump administration ar- controlled House, but the
gued that the head count Republican-controlled Sen-
needed to end immedi- ate didn't take up the re-
ately so the U.S. Census Bu- quest. Then, in late July and
reau had enough time to early August, bureau offi-
crunch the numbers before cials shortened the count
a congressionally mandat- schedule by a month so
ed year-end deadline for that it would finish at the
turning in figures used for A flashing sign reads, "Make Miami Count," in Spanish near the iconic "Freedom Tower," Monday, end of September.
deciding how many con- Oct. 5, 2020, in downtown Miami. Associated Press The Republicans' inaction
gressional seats each state coincided with a July or-
gets. A coalition of local "Moreover, meeting the finishing the 2020 census Koh struck that down too, der from Trump directing
governments and civil rights deadline at the expense of and a Dec. 31 deadline for accusing officials of "lurch- the Census Bureau to have
groups had sued the Trump the accuracy of the census submitting numbers used ing from one hasty, unex- the apportionment count
administration, arguing is not a cost worth paying, to determine how many plained plan to the next ... exclude people who are in
that minorities and others especially when the Gov- congressional seats each and undermining the cred- the country illegally. The or-
in hard-to-count communi- ernment has failed to show state gets — a process ibility of the Census Bureau der was later ruled unlawful
ties would be missed if the why it could not bear the known as apportionment. and the 2020 Census." by a panel of three district
count ended early. They lesser cost of expending That caused the deadlines An appellate court panel judges in New York, but the
said the census schedule more resources to meet to revert back to a previ- upheld Koh's order allow- Trump administration is ap-
was cut short to accom- the deadline or continuing ous Census Bureau plan ing the census to continue pealing that case to the Su-
modate a July order from its prior efforts to seek an that had field operations through October but struck preme Court.
Trump that would exclude extension from Congress," ending Oct. 31 and the re- down the part that sus- By sticking to the Dec. 31
people in the country il- Sotomayor wrote. porting of apportionment pended the Dec. 31 dead- deadline, control of the
legally from the numbers Last month, U.S. District figures at the end of April line for turning in apportion- apportionment count
used to decide how many Judge Lucy Koh in San 2021. When the Census Bu- ment numbers. The panel would remain in the hands
congressional seats each Jose, California sided with reau, and the Commerce of three appellate judges of the Trump administration
state gets. the plaintiffs and issued an Department, which over- said that just because the no matter who wins the
Associate Justice Sonia So- injunction which suspend- sees the statistical agency, year-end deadline is impos- presidential election next
tomayor dissented. ed a Sept. 30 deadline for picked an Oct. 5 end date, sible to meet doesn't mean month.q

Judge: NY’s ejection from trusted traveler program was wrong

By LARRY NEUMEISTER core constitutional and man said it was "hard to tions." also said declaring the
Associated Press democratic values un- imagine" the government In February, President Don- decision unlawful and for-
NEW YORK (AP) — The De- derlying the Administra- would have done so with- ald Trump's administration mally vacating it was nec-
partment of Homeland Se- tive Procedure Act, which out facing lawsuits. said it was kicking New essary to ensure it cannot
curity illegally ejected over set procedures to ensure A message seeking com- York out of the programs be reinstated.
800,000 New Yorkers from federal agencies are ac- ment was left with the Jus- because a newly enacted The exclusion of New York
the trusted traveler secu- countable to the public tice Department. Through state law allowing unau- from the programs out-
rity programs that let vet- and their actions subject a spokesperson, federal thorized immigrants to get raged New York Gov.
ted travelers avoid long to review by the courts. prosecutors in New York driver's licenses had cut Andrew Cuomo, a Dem-
security lines at airports, He said government offi- declined comment. off some federal access ocrat, who called for in-
and any lingering effects cials made matters worse Antony Gemmell, senior to state motor vehicle re- vestigations by Attorney
after the programs were when they initially re- staff attorney with the cords. General William Barr and
restored must be eliminat- sponded to a lawsuit "by New York Civil Liberties In July, the administration congressional Democrats.
ed, a judge said Tuesday. repeating their mislead- Union, said in a statement reversed itself and told Fur- He said the state, which
U.S. District Judge Jesse M. ing, if not false, represen- that the "ban was always man it had misrepresent- sued, will seek civil dam-
Furman said in a written tations, in some instances about political retribution, ed the facts in a lawsuit ages from the Department
decision that the exclu- under oath." not safety." over the programs. of Homeland Security.
sion of New York from the The government even- He added: "The lies could The judge said both sides "It was all politics all the
programs in February was tually admitted that the not stand up to the light agreed the case was not time. It was all exploita-
arbitrary and capricious. Department of Homeland of day and today's ruling moot, in part because of tion all the time," an angry
He also said the govern- Security's decision was le- is an important check on the lingering effects of the Cuomo told a news brief-
ment undermined the gally indefensible, but Fur- the Administration's ac- February action. Furman ing in July.q