The governor is getting a bad rap. He’s banning all assemblies of more than 50 people. His motive is without question only to reduce the spread of the disease.
If 50 people gather together and three have Corona, after the gathering is over possibly 20 will have Corona and they can spread it to others that didn’t attend.
The governor must think of those others. Those 50 people by gathering can become a danger to others.
The basic issue is this: If a government imposes restrictions on religious institutions while allowing business establishments to operate under similar conditions without those restrictions in place, then the government has violated the First Amendment rights of the religious institution.
If Walmart and grocery stores can operate with protective measures in place, then there is no damn good reason why a church couldn't do the same thing.
The State of New Jersey is going to get its ass handed to it in Federal court when this is all over ... and Murphy's "I wasn't thinking of the Bill of Rights" statement is going to be Exhibit A for every plaintiff who sues him.
The governor does not have the authority to do that. This is supposed to be a nation of laws and that means that tyrant wannabes can be held accountable. We shall see if that happens.