Robert Groves

WASHINGTON — Since May, some Senate Republicans have been blocking the nomination of Robert Groves to head the Census Bureau, worrying that ACORN would be involved in next year’s count.

Among red-meat issues for the GOP, few issues surpass ACORN (the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now), the group that has been implicated in voter registration fraud in several states.

When push came to shove a short time ago, the protest collapsed and a large bipartisan coalition of senators voted 76-15 to invoke cloture and end the standoff. On a voice vote the Senate quickly then confirmed Groves, a former Census official and director of the University of Michigan’s Survey Research Center, on a voice vote.

Sen. David Vitter, R-La., argued in debate that ACORN’s status as a partner with the Census Bureau in publicizing next year’s national head count is reason for concern. The Census Bureau says that it has more than 44,000 partners.

“We must not let the Census become a blatant political tool in this country,” he said.

It doesn’t help a partisan protest when one of your own gushes about the opposition.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Me., called Groves “superbly well-qualified for this important position” and argued that confirmation was urgent because of “gross mismanagement” at the Census Bureau.

The next Census is viewed as critical to Missouri given the potential of losing funds because of undercounting — and losing a seat in Congress because of population declines.

Senators from Missouri and Illinois voted for the cloture motion that enabled Groves’ confirmation.