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The government had started printing the census forms, the Commerce Department had publicly announced its legal waiver, and Justice Department lawyers had litigated their cases. But President Trump was not ready to give up the fight.
After a tweet that put a good deal of his administration on the heels of the July 4 holiday, Trump decided to unilaterally revive the government's attempt to add a citizenship issue to the 2020 census.
It is a gesture that fits into the long pattern that Trump would move forward – and sometimes overthrow his own administration – to force a fight on controversial issues. Although the strategy has so far yielded mixed results, it still allows Trump to portray himself as a relentless agent of change – an image that has become central to his bid for reelection.
"We are fighting very hard against the system, it's a very difficult system but we will make a decision," Trump told the press on Friday, adding that he "thought" to issue a decree in order to Add the question of citizenship to the census forms. .
The Trump administration, which announced Friday in federal court that it would reverse its plans and continue to address the issue of citizenship, faces long difficulties. Last week, the Supreme Court prevented the government from asking questions about citizenship, after stating that the reasons given by the administration were "artificial".
Stung by this legal reprimand and facing tight deadlines to advance the constitutionally mandated census, the Trump government publicly decided to abandon its efforts to add the citizenship issue. On Tuesday, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, who oversees the decennial count of the population, said the administration was abandoning its efforts and began printing census forms without asking any questions about citizenship.
President Trump stops for talks with guests as he boards Marine One to leave the South Lawn at the White House on Friday. (Jabin Botsford / The Washington Post)
But the appearance of premature surrender – and the backlash it provoked in the Conservatives – was enough to bring in Trump.
"The reports that the Ministry of Commerce is abandoning its quest to ask the question of citizenship at the census are incorrect or, to put it another way, FALSE!" Tweeted Trump on Wednesday. "We are definitely going ahead, as it should, because of the importance of the answer to that question."
The President has repeatedly rushed to the brink with last minute reversals in similar situations, giving the impression that he is avoiding his administration to throw the sponge on essential priorities before exhausting all options.
In December, after the Trump Congress negotiators agreed to support a bipartisan spending agreement to keep the government open – without providing funding for the construction of new border gates – Trump had canceled them.
The government and legislators have been stuck in a stalemate over funding at the border. Trump took advantage of the battle to reinforce his political outlook by broadcasting digital ads to inform voters of his uncompromising position.
President Trump stops to talk to reporters as he heads aboard the Marine One to leave the South Lawn at the White House on Friday. (Jabin Botsford / The Washington Post)
When Trump finally agreed to assign and sign a spending bill, he joined with the announcement of a national emergency declaration authorizing the government to reallocate existing funds. to the construction of the wall.
Since then, several federal judges have ruled against Trump's effort to spend taxpayers' money without congressional approval.
Despite legal setbacks, the president can still tell voters that he is fighting as hard as he can to defend his priorities, said Doug Heye, a former spokesman for the Republican House and Republican National Committee leaders.
"For much of the base, the activity is an accomplishment," he said. "Demonstrating a will to fight is not just that important, but for much of the grassroots, it's more important than having a consistent strategy to win."
For Trump, quietly losing on some issues is more offensive than falling into a dramatic fight, said Tim O'Brien, author of Trump's biography, "TrumpNation: The Art of Being Donald."
"It's a president who always thinks dramatically – he does not think strategically," he said. "The second time that a problem is perceived or described as" Trump Lost ", it's almost a guarantee that it will change course quite quickly."
For a president who promised voters that they would be tired of winning, Trump has shown no hesitation in losing legal battles. The courts have overruled his attempts to withdraw money from sanctuary towns, block congressional inquiries into his finances and overturn several environmental regulations.
In total, federal judges ruled against the Trump administration more than 60 times in the last two years.
Trump is generally appealing negative decisions against him, often for the purpose of joining the Supreme Court – a strategy he has transparently described after his national emergency declaration in February.
"We will have a national emergency, we will be sued and they will sue us in the ninth circuit," he said at a press conference in February at Rose Garden. "We may have a bad decision, then another bad decision, and then we'll end up in the Supreme Court. We hope that we will get a fair decision and win in the Supreme Court. "
In the legal battle around the census, the High Court did not serve as a buffer for Trump against the lower courts. Opponents argued before federal judges that the issue of citizenship would lead to undercoverage of millions of people afraid to recognize that a non-citizen was part of their household. Hispanics would be disproportionately affected.
Roberts wrote in his opinion that the Department of Commerce's stated purpose of adding the question – that the Department of Justice had asked for it to facilitate the application of the Voting Rights Act – had not exceeded.
But where his lawyers saw the defeat, Trump saw an invitation to start again.
"I have a lot of respect for Judge Roberts, but he did not like it, but he said," Come back, "Trump told the press on Friday at the White House. "Essentially, he said," Come back. "
Heye said that Trump would not hesitate to use negative court decisions to his political advantage, declaring himself the victim of an unfair system.
"If you're in Trump's base, all he's doing is reinforcing his central argument that the system is rigged," he said. "So if the court rules in his favor, it's a big win for Trump." If the court rules against him, Trump can say, "That's how the system is rigged against you." Win or lose, he can always advance this argument. "
Although the basic-first strategy has helped boost Trump's support, it is unclear whether the president's approach is doing more harm than good to his electoral prospects.
But Trump's willingness to push the boundaries to defend his priorities may also seem chaotic to some moderate voters.
Regarding trade, Trump relaunched a trade skirmish with China with new tariffs last year after his Treasury Secretary publicly declared that the US was "putting the trade war on hold". of Syria without obtaining the support of the then Secretary of Defense, Jim Mattis, who abruptly resigned in December after the decision.
And on immigration, he threatened to close the southern border, impose tariffs in Mexico and restore family separations.
Accusations that he was politicizing the census or provoking a potential constitutional crisis by challenging the judge's decision to add a citizenship issue could add to the White House's sense of disorder that deterred voters, O'Brien said.
"Immigration is an issue that arouses a very broad consensus among the public," he said. "People are supportive of immigration as long as it is well managed, and they do not want to see it politicized."
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