It’s not enough that folks from the Birther & Death Panel set have convinced many good folks that the Census is a secret plot to steal their lawn furniture. There’s another irony waiting. Historically, the real problem with underreporting has been in underprivileged communities — particularly African-Americans and Latinos and especially in large urban areas. To that end, conservatives have worked for the better part of two decades to stop the Census from taking any steps to correct numbers in the face of widespread non-response: namely, statistical sampling. And in the face of that pressure, the current Census Director has ruled out using sampling in the 2010 Census.
Now, it’s hard not to appreciate some of the irony in right-wing lies about the Census coming back to bite them. But it’s really a loss for everyone if everyone in the country, irrespective of race, creed, ideological persuasion, region and whatever else, doesn’t get counted.
But if there really is widespread undercounting because of the antics of folks like Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN), it’ll just be tough luck. There won’t be any solution.
