So, Neil Gorsuch Is An Asshole?

Nina Totenberg reports that (1) the Chief Justice asked his colleagues to mask up out of respect for Sotomayor’s health concerns, (2) only Gorsuch refused, and (3) his refusal forced Sotomayor to participate in arguments and conference remotely. https://t.co/DmsQV8j7Wz pic.twitter.com/7JG5hMN0q7

— Mark Joseph Stern (@mjs_DC) January 18, 2022

Not that much of a surprise. He’s also not all that bright.

At his first sitting in 2017, he sought to dominate the argument and repeatedly suggested that a complex case, involving conflicting provisions, was really very simple. 

 "Wouldn't it be easier if we just followed the plain text of the statute?" he asked over and over. "What am I missing?" 

 A lot, said his colleagues, both liberal and conservative. 

"This is unbelievably complicated," lamented conservative Justice Samuel Alito. Whoever wrote the statute must be "somebody who takes pleasure tearing the wings off flies," he said, provoking loud snickers on the bench.

Pro-tip: when you’re the new guy, and nobody in the room agrees with you, it’s probably because they aren’t wrong.