Neil Gorsuch’s Call For Civility Was Always Just For Show

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(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

This information probably does not surprise Supreme Court watchers — like even a little bit — but, Neil Gorsuch is a real jerk of a coworker.

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Folks have noted that since the omicron COVID surge, Neil Gorsuch was the only Supreme Court justice not to mask up during oral arguments. And we’ve also noted that Sonia Sotomayor, who has type 1 diabetes and is over 65 (both risk factors for COVID complications), was participating in Court business virtually.

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Turns out you are 100% correct to assume those facts are related. And Gorsuch has refused to mask up despite being specifically asked to do so by the Chief Justice, as reported earlier today by Nina Totenberg:

Now, though, the situation had changed with the omicron surge, and according to court sources, Sotomayor did not feel safe in close proximity to people who were unmasked. Chief Justice John Roberts, understanding that, in some form asked the other justices to mask up.

They all did. Except Gorsuch, who, as it happens, sits next to Sotomayor on the bench. His continued refusal since then has also meant that Sotomayor has not attended the justices’ weekly conference in person, joining instead by telephone.

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Now Gorsuch is trending on Twitter as his asshole status comes into focus:

Neil Gorsuch: first class boor, total asshole. Of course, we knew this from his confirmation hearing, where he made clear he could care less if a truck driver froze to death. https://t.co/MnS53kTZo4

— Norman Ornstein (@NormOrnstein) January 18, 2022

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Regardless of what you think about his politics – Gorsuch appears to be a terrible, terrible person. https://t.co/8g1rteWQLu

— Tim Fullerton (@TimFullerton) January 18, 2022

Confirmation of what we all already knew. Whatever you think about masks, Gorsuch, who sits next to Sotomayor at work, just decided to be a dick to a colleague. https://t.co/jxhSzIXMJk

— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) January 18, 2022

Good take on reporting Justice Gorsuch declined to wear a mask to help protect Justice Sotomayor, who has type I Diabetes & is high risk, as infection rates soared in DC. https://t.co/cejzfb7Ozr

— Joyce Alene (@JoyceWhiteVance) January 18, 2022

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The eye-popping super irony here, of course, is that GORSUCH HAS WRITTEN A BOOK ON CIVILITY. He recounted a story in the book that his wife’s grandmother told him he’d never be sorry for being kind. I guess that was all lip service until he could use a stolen lifetime appointment to stick it to an elderly immunocompromised coworker!

But really, the one that gets me is Gorsuch’s reported fondness for a particular rule of civility that George Washington is said to have written as a child:

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And [Gorsuch] notes that George Washington had to copy by hand all 110 rules of civility that were written by the Jesuits in 1595. In the interview, Gorsuch paraphrased one rule that he particularly liked.

“Do not speak so closely to another person with such enthusiasm that you bedew the other man with your spittle,” he said, from a safe distance. “It’s a good rule. It’s a good rule.”

You know what else helps with that spittle problem? A goddamned mask.

Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

Topics

COVID, Neil Gorsuch, Nina Totenberg, SCOTUS, Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court