Tipsheet

NPR’s Fake SCOTUS Story Makes the Case Again for Why They Should Be Defunded

Matt Vespa
Matt Vespa  |  January 19, 2022 12:30 PM

Who were your sources, guys? What was the process here at National Public Radio? I only ask because, yet again, NPR is being thrown into the woodchipper for peddling fake news. The story that set off a wave of controversy among liberal media circles is that Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Sonia Sotomayor requested that other members wear masks amid the Omicron spike. Justice Neil Gorsuch refused, causing Sotomayor to work from home. Here's the story to recap (via NPR):

It was pretty jarring earlier this month when the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court took the bench for the first time since the omicron surge over the holidays. All were now wearing masks. All, that is, except Justice Neil Gorsuch. What's more, Justice Sonia Sotomayor was not there at all, choosing instead to participate through a microphone setup in her chambers.

Sotomayor has diabetes, a condition that puts her at high risk for serious illness, or even death, from COVID-19. She has been the only justice to wear a mask on the bench since last fall when, amid a marked decline in COVID-19 cases, the justices resumed in-person arguments for the first time since the onset of the pandemic.

Now, though, the situation had changed with the omicron surge, and according to court sources, Sotomayor did not feel safe in close proximity to people who were unmasked. Chief Justice John Roberts, understanding that, in some form asked the other justices to mask up.

They all did. Except Gorsuch, who, as it happens, sits next to Sotomayor on the bench. His continued refusal since then has also meant that Sotomayor has not attended the justices' weekly conference in person, joining instead by telephone.

You can see how liberals would react to this, right? Well, it was fake. Columnist Mark Davis called out NPR, noting that SCOTUS had already announced that Sotomayor was working remotely before this media circus started. And now the Supreme Court said the story is false. 

"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." 

All the justices are vaccinated. All received a booster. And all are tested regularly. 

NPR is insufferable. We all know that—and they just gave yet another reason for why they should be defunded. Also, will NPR retract? Will the fact-checkers be on outlets that reported this false story? I'm not going to bet the mortgage on it.  

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