When the constitutional architects of the United States got together, they came up with a crazy plan: “What if we count everyone in the country and allocate political representation that way?”

It was a radical act. Until then, censuses had been used by kings to levy taxes and conscript men into war. With the penning of article 1, section 2 of the US constitution, being counted ensured that states would get financial resources and political representatives. Congress was tasked with building the processes to anchor representation to the population. People wanted to be counted. And politicians wanted their people to be counted more.

For more than a century, professionals at the US Census Bureau have built protocols and established norms to resist partisan interference. Scientists and other experts work together to make the best data possible so that democracy can function. But many of their systems are being upended and challenged by “Jenga politics”.

In the game of Jenga, players take turns pulling out planks and adding more pressure to the top, hoping someone else will be blamed for making the tower collapse. This is what’s happening to our government. Few politicians publicly admit that they are trying to dismantle our administrative state – although some do – but it’s teetering on the brink. Meanwhile, oft-maligned civil servants are running around with duct tape trying to keep the whole tower from falling.

The public pays little attention to the census. The census involves math. It is wonky. Eyes glaze over when government officials start talking about statistical methods and esoteric policies for governing data. It’s hard to convince most people – perhaps including you? – to care about the census. This has created a vulnerability that weakens the American........

© The Guardian