Trump Campaign Mails Out Fake Census Forms to Entire Country

FROM LOS ANGELES TIMES

By Sarah D. Wire

WASHINGTON — The Republican National Committee is sending documents labeled “2020 Congressional District Census” to people in California and across the country just weeks before the start of the official nationwide count of the country’s population.

Critics say the misleading mailers — in envelopes labeled “Do Not Destroy. Official Document” and including a lengthy questionnaire on blue-tinted paper similar to the type used by the real census — are designed to confuse people and possibly lower the response rate when the count begins in mid-March.

The top of the mailer states it is “commissioned by the Republican Party.” In smaller print on the second page, below a request for donations, is a notice that it is paid for by the Republican National Committee. Included in the envelope is a four-page letter from National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel asking for donations to the party and a promise to support President Trump in November’s election.

Unlike the official census form, the RNC survey is largely made up of political questions, such as whether the respondent supports using military force against Iran, thinks race relations in the country are getting worse, and believes “political correctness” has gotten out of hand.

Trump’s reelection campaign has followed up with text messages to some recipients, urging them to fill out the survey online.

With billions of dollars in federal funding on the line and a chance that California could lose a seat in Congress based on the census results, critics worry some residents will fill out the mock census document and ignore or throw away the real one.

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