OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene took verbal aim at Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Thursday following an NPR report claiming she felt like she is “at-risk” of being seriously afflicted by COVID-19 due to a preexisting condition and thus feels compelled to hear oral arguments virtually.
Sotomayor, who is diabetic, has heard cases remotely, from her chamber, as the omicron variant of the virus spread and cases spiked.
Also, a report earlier this week from NPR’s Supreme Court reporter Nina Totenberg claimed that Sotomayor would not attend sessions in person because Justice Neil Gorsuch refused to wear a mask, a claim the justices and the high court have both denied.
Greene, a Georgia Republican who has been suspended from Twitter, posted on rising alternative Twitter site GETTR:
If Justice Sotomayor is too “at risk” to be around Justice Gorsuch without his mask on, then Sotomayer is not fit to serve on the Supreme Court and should step down.
Stop punishing healthy people with masking and vaccine mandates.
It’s time to either trust your vaccines and boosters and leave the rest of us alone OR shelter in place to protect your fragile health until you feel safe enough to come back out into a fully functioning normal society.
Unvaccinated and unmasked people are NOT responsible for the state of others’ health.
Newsmax adds:
The congresswoman, a strong supporter of former President Donald Trump, has said she’s unvaccinated. She has been given fines for defying rules requiring masks on the House floor.
Sotomayor, 67, was the only justice to wear a mask when the Supreme Court returned to in-person oral arguments last fall. However, when the high court returned in January, only Gorsuch, 54, remained maskless.
Earlier this week, Totenberg reported that Gorsuch had been asked by Chief Justice John Roberts to mask up so as to accommodate Sotomayor, as the two are seated next to each other in chambers:
It was pretty jarring earlier this month when the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court took the bench for the first time since the omicron surge over the holidays. All were now wearing masks. All, that is, except Justice Neil Gorsuch. What’s more, Justice Sonia Sotomayor was not there at all, choosing instead to participate through a microphone set up in her chambers.
Sotomayor has diabetes, a condition that puts her at high risk for serious illness, or even death, from COVID-19. She has been the only justice to wear a mask on the bench since last fall when, amid a marked decline in COVID-19 cases, the justices resumed in-person arguments for the first time since the onset of the pandemic.
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 for Gorsuch…
“[Gorsuch’s] continued refusal since then has also meant that Sotomayor has not attended the justices’ weekly conference in person, joining instead by telephone,” Totenberg added.
Both justices issued a joint statement earlier this week denying Totenberg’s report.
“Reporting that Justice Sotomayor asked Justice Gorsuch to wear a mask surprised us,” the statement said. “It is false.
“While we may sometimes disagree about the law, we are warm colleagues and friends,” the statement added.
Fox News also reported that the claim was inaccurate.
Speaking to Bret Baier, host and correspondent Shannon Bream noted that the NPR report said Sotomayor “did not feel safe in close proximity to people who were unmasked.”
“It then says that Justice Gorsuch who normally sits right next to Sotomayor on the bench has repeatedly refused to do so and that’s forced Justice Sotomayor to operate remotely from her office for arguments and conferences,” Bream continued.
“I am told that is not accurate,” the Fox News host noted further.
