Trump's goal to create state-by-state citizenship lists isn't feasible, experts say

"Experts say that compiling these citizenship lists isn't feasible, as the federal government does not have the reliable data needed to construct accurate tallies of citizens and the states in which they reside."

"The new executive order is the latest front in the Trump administration's efforts to exert control over state-run federal elections, although the Constitution gives the power of election administration to states."

"The push to create state-by-state citizenship tallies is a 'further escalation' of existing efforts at the federal level to scrutinize voter rolls, said John Davisson, senior counsel and director of litigation at the Electronic Privacy Information Center."

"DHS has been building out its SAVE system, or Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements, to enforce laws that only U.S. citizens can vote in federal elections by turning data it owns or can access into a searchable, national citizenship system."

President Trump issued an executive order directing the Department of Homeland Security to compile lists of adult citizens in each state to combat mail-in voting. Experts argue that the federal government lacks reliable data for accurate citizenship tallies, which could disenfranchise eligible voters. This order represents a federal effort to control state-run elections, despite constitutional limitations. Voting rights advocates and Democratic officials plan to challenge the order legally. The Justice Department has also sought access to voter registration databases, further escalating scrutiny of voter rolls.

Read at Nextgov.com