Former Democrat presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard offered praise for a recent Supreme Court decision blocking New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s efforts to limit religious gatherings during the pandemic.
The court ruled 5-4 in favor of a pair of religious groups who argued that Cuomo’s rules unfairly targeted them and violated the Constitution’s guarantee of religious freedom.
Chief Justice John Roberts, as per usual, sided with the liberals on the court in dissenting, meaning President Trump’s latest appointee Amy Coney Barrett cast the crucial and deciding vote.
Gabbard sided with Barrett and the other conservatives who smacked down Cuomo’s edict.
“I strongly support this Supreme Court ruling defending our First Amendment/freedom of religion,” she tweeted, sharing a copy of the ruling.
“While COVID may temporarily require certain public health restrictions, houses of worship MUST be treated same as secular institutions—not more harshly/strictly,” she added.
I strongly support this Supreme Court ruling defending our First Amendment/freedom of religion. While COVID may temporarily require certain public health restrictions, houses of worship MUST be treated same as secular institutions—not more harshly/strictly.https://t.co/PD2ztczYrD
— Tulsi Gabbard
(@TulsiGabbard) November 30, 2020
RELATED: CO Lawmaker: Nobody Has Authority To Impose Restrictions On You In Your Own Home
Cuomo’s efforts to stifle freedom
Justice Neil Gorsuch, another appointee of President Trump, said in his concurring opinion that the government “is not free to disregard the First Amendment in times of crisis.”
“At a minimum, that Amendment prohibits government officials from treating religious exercises worse than comparable secular activities, unless they are pursuing a compelling interest and using the least restrictive means available,” Gorsuch added.
“There is no world in which the Constitution tolerates color-coded executive edicts that reopen liquor stores and bike shops but shutter churches, synagogues and mosques,” he wrote.
Justice Barrett Casts Deciding Vote, Gorsuch Destroys Cuomo | Law & Crime https://t.co/8K9yLlSOYv
— Janice Dean (@JaniceDean) November 26, 2020
Governor Cuomo has scoffed at the Supreme Court’s ruling calling it “moot” and “irrelevant.”
His Democrat colleague Gabbard disagrees, urging her followers to read the decision she “strongly” agrees with.
Ensuring freedom and religion for all – even during a pandemic – is anything but irrelevant.
Could Democrat Tulsi Gabbard switch parties?
There are several areas in which Gabbard still firmly trends with the Democrat party. But there are also several areas that demonstrate she is one of the few remaining independent thinkers on the left.
Support for this Supreme Court ruling is one such indicator.
As is her recent appeal for President Trump to pardon Edward Snowden and Julian Assange while launching an attack on the ‘deep state.’
“Since you’re giving pardons to people, please consider pardoning those who, at great personal sacrifice, exposed the deception and criminality of those in the deep state,” Gabbard tweeted.
.@realDonaldTrump Since you’re giving pardons to people, please consider pardoning those who, at great personal sacrifice, exposed the deception and criminality of those in the deep state. https://t.co/aeXklUsNSd
— Tulsi Gabbard
During the Democratic primaries, Gabbard held nothing back in attacking Hillary Clinton for suggesting she, a military combat veteran, was actually a Russian asset.
“She is a favorite of the Russians,” Clinton said in reference to Gabbard. “They have a bunch of sites and bots and other ways of supporting her so far. That’s assuming Jill Stein will give it up, which she might not because she is also a Russian asset.”
“I have dedicated my entire adult life to serving our country,” Gabbard shot back.
“For Hillary Clinton and her powerful allies to attempt to smear me and accuse me – really implying that I’m a traitor to the country that I love – is something that I cannot allow to go unchecked.”
I love our country. I’ve served as a soldier for nearly 17 years, deployed twice to the Middle East, & served in Congress for over 7 years. If Hillary & allies can destroy my reputation by portraying me as a traitor to the country I love, they can do it to anyone. #StandWithTulsi pic.twitter.com/Ly81D1sOUD
— Tulsi Gabbard
Gabbard is credited with helping to derail the campaign of vice president-elect Kamala Harris by focusing on her controversial career as a prosecutor.
She blasted Harris as being responsible for putting “over 1,500 people in jail for marijuana violations and then laughed about it when she was asked if she ever smoked marijuana.”
“[Harris] blocked evidence that would have freed an innocent man from death row until the courts forced her to do so,” Gabbard said during a debate smackdown. “She kept people in prison beyond their sentences to use them as cheap labor for the state of California.”
Kamala Harris getting her receipt from Tulsi Gabbard for dismissing her earlier. Brutal
“She put over 1500 people in jail for marijuana violations & laughed about it when she was asked if she ever smoked marijuana”#DemDebate #DemDebate2 pic.twitter.com/JR4EE7iOg2
— NighSide (@NighSide) August 1, 2019
Absolutely savage.
Gabbard did not seek reelection to Congress in 2020 and her seat will be filled by Kai Kahele representing Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional district.
What are her plans moving forward? Will she switch parties? Will Tulsi Gabbard disavow the increasingly radical Democrat party?
Or will she walk away from politics?
It’d be hard to imagine a strong-willed woman like Gabbard not finding some way to continue to fight for what she believes is for the good of the country.
The post Democrat Tulsi Gabbard Praises Supreme Court Ruling Slapping Down Cuomo’s Religious Gatherings Edict appeared first on The Political Insider.
