San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo announced Friday that he would be named as a plaintiff and join a lawsuit with San Jose and other jurisdictions to prevent President Trump from excluding undocumented residents from the 2020 census.
Liccardo said by not counting individuals fully, the White House would be in clear violation of the 14th Amendment.
“In San Jose, and under the U.S. Constitution, everyone counts,” Liccardo said. “It is astounding that 132 years after we wiped the abhorrent ‘three-fifths’ clause from Article I of our U.S. Constitution, and as our nation yearns for racial equity, we have a presidential administration seeking to return to the days prior to the passage of the 14th Amendment.”
On July 21, Trump released a memorandum directing the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which overlooks the Census Bureau, to discount undocumented residents and count certain immigrants when determining congressional seats.
The lawsuit alleges that the memorandum violates the Equal Protection Clause’s prohibition of intentional discrimination against persons of color in the 14th Amendment, the Enumeration Clause of Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution and the Census Act.
