President Trump announced last week that he has directed the Department of Commerce to start working on a new U.S. census. So what is the goal? It's to make sure that those who are in the country are not included in the population count.
"Which was something that president Trump wanted to do as they were preparing for the 2020 census in his first term" said Chuck DeVore, chief officer with the Texas Public Policy Foundation.
That was the plan, but then it was thrown out and overruled when Joe Biden took office in 2021.
"What we're really talking about here is asking census to use their existing methodologies, their existing survey's that they send out to make some estimates and get some formal, official government estimates as to how many people are in the nation illegally" DeVore told KTRH.
It's needed, and it's long overdue as a way to keep track of abused federal funding.
"There are states like California who violate federal law and provide taxpayer funded benefits to illegal immigrants who clearly should not be getting any such benefits" noted DeVore.
It's also a way to allow for fair represntation.
President Trump posted on Truth Social: "I have instructed our Department of Commerce to immediately begin work on a new and highly accurate CENSUS based on modern day facts and figures and, importantly, using the results and information gained from the Presidential Election of 2024," the president said, "People who are in our Country illegally WILL NOT BE COUNTED IN THE CENSUS. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
Photo: Andrew Harnik / Getty Images News / Getty Images