The republican's 'census' forms are not actual census forms

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/rnc-s-census-forms-are-not-actual-census-forms-n1143421?cid=sm_fb_maddow&fbclid=IwAR2UsYzZZ5bpOTCjxZqRAwHD-phEc0W_QBVl7X_bC19V8HknnXGzbAjsNb8

Feb. 26, 2020, 10:50 AM EST
By Steve Benen

•••••

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 Republicans' document includes this specific appeal at the bottom, separate from the request for a campaign contribution, alongside an unchecked box: "I cannot send a donation at that level right now. But I am enclosing $15 to help pay for the cost of processing my Census Document."

It led the DNC to argue, "That's a political donation disguised as a government processing fee."

•••••

There are practical considerations to keep in mind. If, for example, Americans see actual materials from the Census Bureau, and discard them because they think the documents are part of an RNC scheme, the response rate could be lower, which is problematic for all sorts of reasons.

But making matters just a little worse, this isn't even the first time the Republican National Committee has pulled this stunt.

Readers who've been with me a very long time may recall some of my coverage from 2010, when the RNC also sent out deceptive fundraising mailings, with envelopes that included text such as "Census Document" and, in all caps, "DO NOT DESTROY/OFFICIAL DOCUMENT."

•••••