Conservatives criticize John Roberts “infected by the swamp” after the Nevada church ruling.

Conservatives are angry with Chief Justice John Roberts. And they don’t keep quiet about it after Roberts sided with liberal Supreme Court justices once again. This time it was to deny a rural Nevada church’s request that the high court prevent the state government from applying a policy that limits in-person church attendance to 50 people. “John Roberts has abandoned his oath,” Senator Ted Cruz of Texas wrote on Twitter.

Cruz was reacting to the decision involving Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley in Dayton, Nev., Which argued that the limit imposed during the coronavirus pandemic was unconstitutional. The Supreme Court did not agree in a decision 5-4 that rejected the request of the Christian church that it should be subject to the same rules that allow casinos and restaurants, among other companies, to operate at 50 percent of their capacity. . Roberts sided with the liberal majority and denied the request without an explanation, which is standard practice for emergency motions. In contrast, the four most conservative members of the court presented three strongly worded dissenters saying they would have granted the church’s request while the court considered the case more carefully. “The Constitution guarantees the free exercise of religion,” wrote judge Samuel Alito. “It says nothing about the freedom to play dice or blackjack, feed chips in a slot machine, or participate in any other game of chance. But the Nevada governor apparently has different priorities. “

Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas accused Nevada of “discriminating against religion.” Then he specifically criticized Roberts: “Judge Roberts was once again wrong, shamefully closing the doors of the church to his flocks.” Cotton also suggested that there had been a change in Roberts’ positions since his confirmation hearing, asking on Twitter: “What happened to that judge?”

Trump also expressed surprise at the decision, but only made a brief comment on Twitter and did not specifically mention Roberts. “Wow,” he wrote. “Win in 2020!”

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee joined the chorus of anti-Roberts voices on Twitter, characterizing Roberts as “swamp-infected” because “he protects casinos and punishes places of worship.” He then went on to say that Roberts should “retire” although “he just needs to repent first.”

Charlie Kirk, a conservative activist who founded Turning Point USA and is a big fan of Trump, called Roberts a “national disgrace” and a “disgrace to ‘conservatism'”. Talk show host Steve Deace said Roberts “should be charged” and, in large measure, called former President George W. Bush, who nominated Roberts for the superior court, “one of the worst presidents of all time ” Dan Bongino, another talk show host, said Roberts “is at war with the Constitution,” while Mark Levin called the decision “another misfortune for John Roberts.”

Anger at Roberts expressed on social media Saturday morning marks the latest chapter in how conservatives have been attacking the chief justice in light of his recent decisions, including overturning a restrictive abortion law in Louisiana. The Trump campaign is trying to fuel that anger to motivate conservative voters who may be disenchanted with the president to support his reelection campaign. Some have doubts about whether that could amount to a winning strategy.

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