A Hearing in the Census Case Turns Surreal
Government lawyers faced an irate federal judge on Wednesday, after the president publicly contradicted what they had told the court.
There’s a three-year-old tweet from Donald Trump that I think about a lot. I’ve forgotten the context in which he made the statement, but the idea remains straightforward:
Don't believe the biased and phony media quoting people who work for my campaign. The only quote that matters is a quote from me!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump), May 28, 2016
As became clear Wednesday, it’s still true, subbing administration in for campaign.
Last week, the Supreme Court ruled against the Trump administration’s attempt to ask respondents about citizenship in the 2020 census, that while it wasn’t forbidden to do so, the administration had misrepresented its reason for wanting to ask, in violation of federal law. That left the door slightly ajar for further attempts,
