TOO MUCH TO ASK

Gorsuch Is Only Justice to Refuse to Wear a Mask for High-Risk Sotomayor, NPR Says

Sotomayor has reportedly been attending weekly conferences remotely due to her colleague’s refusal to take basic COVID precautions.

Justice Neil Gorsuch is reportedly the only member of the Supreme Court to refuse to wear a mask to help protect his colleague Justice Sonia Sotomayor, whose diabetes puts her at high risk for severe illness from COVID-19. NPR reports that after Sotomayor made clear she felt vulnerable amid an Omicron-driven surge in cases, Chief Justice John Roberts asked the other justices to wear a mask on the bench. All of them did except Gorsuch, who also happens to sit next to Sotomayor, according to NPR. As a result, Sotomayor is said to have attended weekly conferences remotely. In a statement responding to the NPR report, Sotomayor and Gorsuch appeared to try and dispel any notion of a feud between them. “Reporting that Justice Sotomayor asked Justice Gorsuch to wear a mask surprised us. It is false. While we may sometimes disagree about the law, we are warm colleagues and friends,” the two said in a joint statement Wednesday.