A recent Supreme Court decision on birthright citizenship, characterized as a misinterpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment, is fueling calls to reform the census process to ensure only citizens and lawful permanent residents are counted for the purposes of congressional apportionment. The argument centers on the potential for the current system to be exploited to inflate political representation in the U.S. House of Representatives and, consequently, the Electoral College.
The core of the issue, as outlined by commentator Mike Davis, founder and president of the Article III Project, lies in the interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment's first section, which grants citizenship to those born in the United States and "subject to the jurisdiction thereof." Davis contends this provision was intended for formerly enslaved people, not for the children of individuals who entered the country illegally or on temporary visas, such as "birth tourists."
The Census Bureau's practice of counting all individuals, regardless of legal status, for apportionment purposes is also under scrutiny. Davis argues that this practice, in place since the Carter administration, along with the Supreme Court's ruling in Trump v. Barbara, creates a loophole. He suggests that children born to non-citizens, including those on temporary visas, are now considered citizens, while the non-citizen parents themselves might not be counted as "persons" for census purposes. This, he asserts, is a "constitutional embarrassment" driven by judicial overreach.
To address these concerns, the proposed Equal Representation Act is presented as a legislative solution. This act aims to limit census counts to American citizens and lawful permanent residents. Davis argues this definition aligns with a correct reading of the Fourteenth Amendment, where "persons" in Section 2 refers to individuals lawfully and permanently domiciled in a state. The legislation seeks to preemptively resolve the issues highlighted by the Barbara decision and ensure that only those with a permanent stake in the country influence its political representation.
The implications extend beyond political representation, impacting federal funding distribution. The census count determines the allocation of federal funds for programs like Medicaid. Therefore, including non-citizens in the count, according to this view, influences how much money flows to states for essential services, a situation that sanctuary states allegedly exploit.
Furthermore, national security concerns are raised, particularly in relation to China. Davis suggests that a large influx of individuals on temporary visas from geopolitical rivals could be used to inflate census counts, thereby manufacturing political representation in Congress without direct conflict. The potential for children of foreign nationals, now granted citizenship, to vote in U.S. elections from abroad and even run for president is cited as a significant vulnerability.
Davis urges Congress to pass the Equal Representation Act and for President Trump to sign it into law before his term concludes in January 2029. He believes that legislative action is crucial to solidify these census reforms, as executive orders could be easily reversed by a future administration. The goal is to correct what is seen as a "catastrophic error" by the Supreme Court and to safeguard the integrity of the American democratic process against what he terms "hostile foreigners."
