Did Montana Lose Representative Because Census Counted Illegals?
08 February 2012 Press Room
Montana could be one of several states to lose out in representation because the 2010 US Census included illegal aliens in the population count as it is used in reapportioning Congressional representation in the House of Representatives. Instead of one Representative, Montana would have two, if it were not for the inflation of the numbers created by counting illegal aliens in states which have large illegal immigrant populations.
The State of Louisiana, another loser in representation, filed suit against the US Secretary of Commerce on January 13, 2012 in the United States Supreme Court, challenging the legality of including illegal aliens in the reapportionment process for the House and for the Electoral College.
Candidates for Montana Governor and Lieutenant Governor, Bob Fanning and Chuck Baldwin, announced last week that they have joined with several others in becoming amici curiae in the pending federal lawsuit. In an editorial posted on Jan. 21, Baldwin said, "If this egregious misinterpretation of the US Constitution is allowed to stand, five states (Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, and Ohio) will lose representation in the US Congress to which they are lawfully entitled, while three states (California, Texas, and Florida) will be awarded additional representation in the US Congress to which they are not lawfully entitled.""In essence, the Obama administration is rigging the US Census to steal a congressional seat from the State of Montana. This rigging will keep Montana from having a second congressional representative. If the illegals in California, Texas, and Florida are not included, then Montana will receive two congressional seats and four electoral votes. Under Obama's rigging plan, Montana will continue to have only one congressional seat and three electoral votes," said Baldwin. But, this isn't the first time that Montana and other states have lost representation, because census data included illegal aliens, and it is not the first time that suit has been brought regarding the issue. At least twice before suits were dismissed by the Supreme Court because it found those filing it had no standing. "As a result, the constitutionality of excluding illegal immigrants from the apportionment has yet to be decided by a court of law," wrote the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) in 2003. " The inclusion of illegal aliens is probably the most controversial part of the apportionment population."CIS explained, "the census counts all residents, including people here illegally, the congressional apportionment process is skewed in favor of states with the most illegal immigrants. That also tilts power in presidential elections, since the Electoral College is based largely on House seats. Counting all noncitizens, legal and illegal, skews the figures even further..." "Article 1 Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution mandates that a census be taken every 10 years expressly for the purpose of apportioning seats in the House of Representatives," explained CIS. "However, the Constitution does not specify the method for apportionment, or how the population to be apportioned should be composed. Several different methods have been used since our country's first apportionment in 1790. The method of Equal Proportions has been used since 1940, and in the 2000 reapportionment.
Baldwin wrote, "The term 'the People' is a technical term used in the U.S. Constitution to refer to the polity, that is, the people who constituted the government and who are legal citizens of the nation. Only by such a tailored count can the constitutionally-authorized decennial census serve the purpose for which that census has been required — the apportionment of representation of the people of the several states in the U.S. House of Representatives."
"It is manifestly untrue that the decennial census ordained by the Constitution is to be taken without regard to a person's 'immigration or citizenship status.' The decennial census is conducted for the apportionment of representation in the House of Representatives, the members of which are 'chosen every second Year by the People of the several States.' (Article. I. Section. 2. Clause. 1. US Constitution). The first sentence of the 14th Amendment establishes a symbiotic relationship between a person's United States citizenship and that person's State citizenship. Thus, whether a person is part of 'the People' of a State is largely, if not exclusively, dictated by a person's 'immigration or citizenship status.' Any census that ignores that connection is fatally flawed."
Baldwin is highly critical of the Governor and other political leaders and candidates for not taking a position on the issue – and for the media for not pointing out the impact of illegal aliens on the democratic process.
Did Montana Lose Representative because Census Counted Illegals?
