Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard on Monday praised the Supreme Court for siding with Catholic churches and Jewish synagogues in a battle against New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo over his coronavirus gathering restrictions.
“I strongly support this Supreme Court ruling defending our First Amendment/freedom of religion,” Gabbard wrote on Twitter. “While COVID may temporarily require certain public health restrictions, houses of worship MUST be treated same as secular institutions — not more harshly/strictly.”
Gabbard linked to the Supreme Court’s opinions, in which a 5-4 majority, swung by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, gave the houses of worship an emergency injunction against Cuomo’s orders.
Gabbard’s support for the decision marks a departure from many of her fellow Democrats, who have decried the decision, citing the risks of the coronavirus pandemic. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, who represents the districts where many of the churches are located, blasted the ruling as the result of an “illegitimate Supreme Court.” Cuomo dismissed it as “irrelevant.”
The decision, which the Supreme Court handed down late Wednesday night, was the first time the body decided in favor of churches in pandemic-related litigation. It allowed churches and synagogues in New York to disregard regulations in which churches were not permitted the same gathering limits as businesses.
“It is hard to believe that admitting more than 10 people to a 1,000-seat church or 400-seat synagogue would create a more serious health risk than the many other activities that the State allows,” the court wrote in an unsigned majority opinion.
The Supreme Court previously ruled against California and Nevada churches this summer in similar lawsuits. At the time, a majority led by Chief Justice John Roberts decided that, because of the unpredictable nature of the pandemic, it would not be in the court’s best interest to give the churches an injunction.
