Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch emphasized the justices’ shared love of country during remarks at the Reagan Civility and Democracy Forum on Tuesday, stressing that despite ideological divisions, the nine justices are united by patriotism and respect for one another’s intentions.
Speaking virtually to students and young professionals from Prague, where he is teaching a course on separation of powers for George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, Gorsuch outlined his approach to navigating disagreements with colleagues on the bench. He singled out liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor, an Obama appointee, as an example of principled disagreement rooted in shared values.
“I know she loves this country,” Gorsuch said of Sotomayor. “She knows I love this country. We know we’re coming at it from the right place internally.”
The remarks came weeks after the Supreme Court concluded one of its most ideologically divided terms in recent years. According to analysis from SCOTUSblog, 28.8 percent of the court’s decisions featured a 6-3 ideological split, compared to just 9 percent in the previous term. Nearly a quarter of all cases saw all six conservative justices in the majority with all three liberal justices in dissent. Gorsuch joined the conservative majority in a series of decisions expanding presidential power during the 2025-26 term.
Despite the sharp divisions, Gorsuch stressed that roughly 45 percent of the court’s cases were decided unanimously, 9-0. The justices have repeatedly emphasized the strength of their working relationships even as public cracks have appeared in recent months. In June, Justice Samuel Alito made a rare rebuttal from the bench directed at Sotomayor after she read a lengthy dissent criticizing his majority opinion in an asylum case. Sotomayor herself issued a similarly rare public apology this spring after taking a swipe at Justice Brett Kavanaugh while speaking at the University of Kansas.
Gorsuch warned that American democracy was “fragile” and that civility was essential to safeguard it. “We are all in it together,” he said. “And if we don’t stay all in it together, it will crumble.”
The Reagan Civility and Democracy Forum, hosted by the Ronald Reagan Center on Civility and Democracy, brings together students, young professionals, and national leaders to discuss how to disagree while still working together to strengthen democratic institutions. The 2026 forum is supported by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.
Sources
- Bloomberg Law — Gorsuch’s remarks at the Reagan Civility and Democracy Forum, his comments on justices’ love of country, and information on the 2025-26 term’s ideological divisions
- SCOTUSblog — Data on the 2025-26 term’s 6-3 splits (28.8%) and unanimous decisions (45%), compared to previous term statistics
- Reagan Foundation — Details on the Reagan Civility and Democracy Forum’s purpose and structure
