Samuel Alito made a sarcastic comment about the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) on Monday during oral arguments for a controversial case, triggering laughter in his courtroom and criticism of the Supreme Court justice on Twitter.
During arguments in a case involving Lorie Smith — a Christian web designer from Colorado who did not want to provider her services for same-sex weddings on religious and free speech grounds — Justice Alito sought to make an awkward hypothetical point by asking if a Black individual working as a mall Santa would be compelled to take a picture with a child dressed up in a KKK outfit.
