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In
a brief order issued on Tuesday night, Justice Ruth Bader
Ginsburg put the looming depositions of Ross and a top Justice
Department official, John Gore, on hold while the high court
further considers the government's request to shield the
officials from questioning.
A New York-based federal appeals court rejected the government's
bid to stop the depositions earlier on Tuesday. Gore's
deposition was scheduled for Wednesday morning, while Ross was
to be questioned on Thursday.
The dispute will test the Supreme Court's views on the level of
deference judges should give a president's cabinet members and
other high-ranking officials. It comes as President Donald
Trump's new appointee to the high court, Justice Brett Kavanaugh,
heard his first arguments on Tuesday morning.
The Trump administration has been vigorously contesting a Sept.
21 ruling by U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman in Manhattan that
ordered Ross, whose department oversees the Census Bureau, to
face a deposition because his “intent and credibility are
directly at issue” in the litigation.
The lawsuit, which includes 18 states and a number of cities and
counties, was spearheaded by Democratic officials.
The U.S. Constitution mandates a census every 10 years, which is
used to allocate seats in Congress and distribute billions of
dollars in federal funds.
Critics of adding a citizenship question to the census have said
it will deter people in immigrant communities from
participating, disproportionately affecting Democratic-leaning
states.
The Justice Department told the Supreme Court that Furman
exceeded his authority in ordering the depositions and that the
states should not be allowed to probe Ross's "mental processes"
over the citizenship question.
(Reporting by Andrew Chung; Editing by Leslie Adler)
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