Last month, John Roberts joined with liberals to reject a Nevada church’s challenge to the state’s order limiting attendance because of the pandemic scare.
The Calvary Chapel sued over Democrat Governor Steve Sisolak’s order limiting church attendance to a maximum of fifty people.
Last month, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision in favor of the government with Roberts joining with liberals once again.
In the dissent, Gorsuch pointed out how absurd that casino could open to hundreds at once by churches were limited. He wrote:
“this is a simple case. Under the Governor’s edict, a 10- screen “multiplex” may host 500 moviegoers at any time. A casino, too, may cater to hundreds at once, with perhaps six people huddled at each craps table here and a similar number gathered around every roulette wheel there. Large numbers and close quarters are fine in such places. But churches, synagogues, and mosques are banned from admitting more than 50 worshippers—no matter how large the building, how distant the individuals, how many wear face masks, no matter the precautions at all. In Nevada, it seems, it is better to be in entertainment than religion. Maybe that is nothing new. But the First Amendment prohibits such obvious discrimination against the exercise of religion. The world we inhabit today, with a pandemic upon us, poses unusual challenges. But there is no world in which the Constitution permits Nevada to favor Caesars Palace over Calvary Chapel.”
In order to get around the rule, the Trump campaign held the "Evangelicals for Trump" event at the Ahern Hotel and Convention Center.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports:
More than 500 people attended the event, according to organizers, which was held in the hotel’s lobby. The lobby’s maximum occupancy is more than 1,600, organizers said. Masks were required, and attendees’ temperatures were checked at each entrance. A sign ordered anyone feeling ill to go home.
The Trump campaign maintained that hotels are allowed to hold events at 50 percent occupancy and are not subject to the 50-person event cap placed on churches and other venues...
...police attempted to shut down the event but were blocked by Trump’s campaign legal team.