New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has been a topic of controversy during the coronavirus pandemic, and that doesn’t appear to be changing anytime soon.
Cuomo’s first came into the spotlight in the early stages of the crisis, as he irresponsibly sent terminal COVID-19 patients into nursing homes, where many of the residents are “at-risk” for complications from the illness. This led to a massive number of cases and deaths, and a permanent black mark on his record.
Now, the governor is still trying to contain the virus by attempting to restrict families from gathering for holidays and even religious purposes.
The Supreme Court isn’t having it.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday night blocked New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo from reimposing strict attendance caps at worship services in areas hit hard by the novel coronavirus.
The court ruled 5-4 to bar Cuomo from enforcing his Oct. 6 “Cluster Initiative” against houses of worship that sued to challenge the restrictions.
The order was also the first in which Justice Amy Coney Barrett played a decisive role. Barrett, who was President Trump’s third Supreme Court nominee, joined the court Oct. 27, after winning Senate confirmation following the Sept. 18 death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Justice Neil Gorsuch, in the concurring opinion, said Cuomo had treated religious activities less favorably than nonreligious ones, according to the New York Times.
“It is time — past time — to make plain that, while the pandemic poses many grave challenges, there is no world in which the Constitution tolerates color-coded executive edicts that reopen liquor stores and bike shops but shutter churches, synagogues, and mosques,” wrote Gorsuch, who was also named to the court by President Trump.
There may be a silent storm brewing as people are close to their breaking point with the stress of Christmas sinking in.
