Federal Court Rules Census Citizenship Question Was Added In “Bad Faith,” Allows ACLU’s Lawsuit To Proceed

Mother Jones reports:

A federal judge said Tuesday that there was a “strong showing of bad faith” by the Trump administration in adding a controversial question about US citizenship to the 2020 census. The judge hinted that he would allow the case to move forward over objections from the administration, and senior administration officials will be subjected to questioning under oath about why the question was added.

Judge Jesse Furman of the Southern District of New York, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, said the administration “deviated from standard operating procedure” by adding the question with no testing. Furman ruled that the plaintiffs challenging the question—including the state of New York and the American Civil Liberties Union—can depose senior officials from the Commerce Department and Justice Department as the case moves forward.

A key portion of the judge’s objections hinges on Wilbur Ross having lied about the origin of the question. Ross told Congress earlier this year that the question was added after he was approached by the Justice Department. In fact, he later confirmed, the question was his idea. Hit the link for more.