I received a newsletter from Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) a few days ago in which part of the opening paragraph read “…told the whole world what the Democrats have been planning this whole time.” Then he quoted Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) “Our ultimate goal is a path to citizenship to all 11 million or however many there are here.”

This is old news. I confirmed that by doing a little research online. But it isn’t “dead news”, nor has it become insignificant news with President Trump’s deportations. Why are there efforts by Schumer, AOC, and others to shut down the SAVE Act which requires voters to show a photo ID before voting? There really is an agenda, and it isn’t hidden!

Senator Kennedy’s letter continued “…their plan all along was to import Democrat voters. Folks, they’re fixing to sway the voter rolls so much that a Republican will never win an election again.”

Civic minded citizens are by now thinking the legislative –both state and federal- redistricting which comes after the decennial census which next happens in 2030. Before redistricting comes the process of apportionment which is the determination of how many seats in the House of Representatives each state gets. States losing population may lose a Representative (or more) while states gaining population may gain a Representative or more. Details of the Census, or enumeration, are in the Constitution’s Article I Section 2.

While the primary purpose of the census is to determine representation in the House of Representatives and in the state legislatures the other critical need is determining distribution of federal and state funds.

Now the questions begin; the first being “Who is counted?” There is a magnitude of difference between “citizens” and “residents” especially when the Constitution uses the term “free persons”. In part, the Constitution states: “…shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.” (We know the three fifths comment was for the slaves, a stain on our United States History corrected by Emancipation Proclamation during the Civil War.)

There is no question that “residents” should be counted when the distribution of federal or state funds is to be considered. There is a question if our Representatives to Congress should be based on just the citizens or include immigrants that are undocumented or otherwise illegally living in the country. It sounds like everyone should be counted, but identified as “citizen” or “resident” to cover both major reasons for the census.

The second, and easiest, question is “When?” In the past everyone was counted on April 1st.

The third and maybe most significant question is “Where are you counted?” In the past this was an easy answer too: Where you slept on April 1st.

But, I beg to differ. For example, should the 52,000 students enrolled at UW-Madison that probably mostly live in the Madison area really live around the state, around the country, and around the world skew the census so the Madison area gets more legislators than actually justified? With this in mind, what impact do college campuses and military bases have on district boundaries? As a career Soldier, I (and my family) lived in five different states and two overseas assignments; but for the entire twenty-one years my legal residence was a small New England State. And, when I communicated with my Representative to voice my opinion or request some help, I communicated with my home state Representative. Further, one year I was counted both at my military residence and at my work site. I was assured that one of the counts would be discarded. (Should I believe them?)

If a Wisconsin college student that actually lives in one of the other forty-nine states, or even overseas, is counted as a resident at the Wisconsin college, then why do we have non-resident tuition for out-of-state students? And, another question might involve a traveling businessman and where he or she would be counted if staying one night in a strange town?

It is probably past time to communicate with our federal legislators concerning the 2023 Census. According to the Census website, the planning for 2030 actually began in 2019, but there might be time to make significant changes. Give some thought to the issues and then let Senators Johnson and Baldwin as well as Representative Van Orden know your thoughts on counting everyone but identify them as residents or citizens. Then, share your thoughts on how or where to count college students and active duty but stationed out-of-state Servicemen.

Ask for an honest count.