Kayleigh McEnany Applauds Supreme Court Decision Allowing California Churches to Reopen

While many have been frustrated that the Supreme Court refused to take up cases regarding potential election fraud in the November election, they have been taking up other cases and last night issued a result that would not have been possible with liberal judges on the court.

In a 6-3 decision, they gave the go-ahead for California churches to resume indoor worship services on a limited basis. The ruling will still allow the state to enforce its ban on singing and chanting and limit attendance at 25% of capacity.

Kayleigh McEnany tweeted out about the decision, “The Supreme Court struck down California’s ban on indoor worship! We have a right to attend church and worship God.”

McEnany exclaimed, “Thankful for a Supreme Court that recognizes this!

The Supreme Court struck down California’s ban on indoor worship!

We have a right to attend church and worship God. Thankful for a Supreme Court that recognizes this!

— Kayleigh McEnany (@kayleighmcenany) February 6, 2021

From the Scotus Blog:

The decision came in a pair of challenges from South Bay United Pentecostal Church, located just south of San Diego, and Harvest Rock Church, with campuses in different locations in southern California. They came to the Supreme Court last month, arguing that California’s restrictions on indoor worship services violate the Constitution, particularly when some businesses are allowed to remain open.

The churches pointed to the Supreme Court’s November 2020 decision in Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn v. Cuomo, blocking enforcement of a New York executive order limiting attendance at worship services. The California churches complained that the lower courts had “refused to recognize” the “‘seismic shift’ in COVID-19 jurisprudence” that the Supreme Court’s ruling in Roman Catholic Diocese had created.

While it was a win for the churches, Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas said they would have lifted California’s restrictions in full.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in a concurring opinion that federal courts owe “significant deference” to state officials when it comes to matters of public health, but he said such deference can only go so far.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett, in her first signed opinion since joining the court in October said that it was up to churches to demonstrate that they were entitled to relief from the singing ban, but that in this case, they had not.

“Of course, if a chorister can sing in a Hollywood studio but not in her church, California’s regulations cannot be viewed as neutral,” Barrett said adding that it remains unsettled as to whether the ban applies evenly across the board in California or if it favors certain sectors.