Editor:

While Republicans claim to espouse old-fashioned traditional values, the failure of Republican senators to convict former president Trump for fomenting the Jan. 6 insurrection — with overwhelming Republican concurrence — gives striking new meaning to the word patriotism.

In their view, patriotism is promoting the lie that a demonstrably free and fair election was stolen and inciting a violent armed mob to stage a coup.

Republication patriotism is undermining the peaceful transfer of presidential power.

It is inciting a mob to attempt to hunt down and hang the vice president and assassinate the speaker of the house and other members of Congress. Republican patriotism is putting party and lust for power above country and democracy.

Patriotism is fealty to a dangerous authoritarian leader.

Republican patriotism is parading through the Capitol with Confederate battle flags, a desecration not seen even during the Civil War; defecating in the halls of Congress; and destroying a memorial to the late civil rights icon John Lewis.

The new patriotism means attacking police officers with flagpoles bearing the American flag. It means causing injury to over 100 police officers defending our lawmakers, killing one of them and driving two to suicide.

Republican patriotism means so viciously maligning a Black police officer with the N-word that he was brought to tears.

One Black police officer subjected to racial slurs and other extreme violence asked, “Is this America?” Tragically, thanks to Republican senators and their base, the answer is yes.

Judith Gordon

Bernalillo