When harsh Wuhan virus restrictions target churches and schools but allow for radical political protests that involve rioting, looting and attacks on police, then law-abiding people are eventually going to revolt.
In Nevada, that meant holding a church service.
Packed house at #EvangelicalsForTrump prayer & praise event in Las Vegas. NV Governor banned church services but casinos can operate at 50% capacity. So we are praying in a casino. pic.twitter.com/fP4xE3lPAb
— Ralph Reed (@ralphreed) August 7, 2020
Earlier this month a large group of Christians gathered for a worship service at one of the only places they could—a casino.
It was a direct challenge to Nevada’s Democrat Gov. Steve Sisolak and his oppressive executive order limiting gatherings to 50 people at houses of worship.
Making the event even more defiant, the group called itself “Evangelicals for Trump.”
Ralph Reed, chairman of the Freedom and Faith Coalition, said it was a “packed house.”
Yet, even while flouting Sisolak’s authoritarian and unconstitutional fiats, participants took seriously the health concerns surrounding the virus; video shows worshippers wearing masks and social-distancing.
In response, Sisolak blasted the service and has now fined the Las Vegas Ahern Hotel for hosting it.
“I was deeply disheartened and dismayed to see the callous and dangerous behavior displayed last night in Las Vegas at a campaign event for President Trump,” Sisolak tweeted, while avoiding the issue of religious liberty.
“I am equally dismayed that the campaign and business defied the State of Nevada emergency directive which limits public gatherings to 50 people or fewer,” he wrote.
The event, officially called “Evangelicals for Trump: Praise, Prayer and Patriotism,” exposed the arbitrary nature of Sisolak’s order.
Churches cannot have more than 50 people, but casinos can host as many people as they want as long as they do not exceed 50 percent total capacity.
Taking those restrictions into account, the Ahern Casino allowed Evangelicals for Trump to hold the large worship service in compliance with the casino’s capacity limits and strict safety protocols. But Sisolak pounced anyway.
Sisolak’s order was also challenged at the U.S. Supreme Court in July. The courts four conservative justices all side with religious groups.
However, its perennial swing-jurist, George W. Bush-appointed Chief Justice John Roberts, broke with constitutional norms to back the court’s liberal wing.
In a stinging dissent, Trump-appointee Neil Gorsuch wrote: “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.”
