Censured? No. Senators Burr, Romney, Cheney should be lauded for their integrity.

Moral courage

Politicians so often hide their private motives behind public principles that it is difficult to tell who has integrity and who doesn’t. One of the few reliable signs is when their votes are obviously going to hurt their careers and social lives but they nevertheless persist.

One doesn’t have to agree with their political goals to realize that instead of censuring Richard Burr, Mitt Romney and Liz Cheney, they should be commended for their personal integrity and moral courage.

Donald Searing, Chapel Hill

Burr’s vote

Kudos to Sen. Richard Burr for putting country over party. ‘Bout time.

Martha Ashby, Raleigh

Burr was wrong

The unanimous censure of Sen. Richard Burr by the N.C. GOP is misunderstood by many. Burr did not vote against Donald Trump at his Senate trial. Burr voted against the Constitution of the United States, which he swore an oath to uphold. Sen. Thom Tillis is correct when he says Burr “voted his conscience.” But Burr was not elected to vote his conscience in constitutional matters.

Barbara Pond, Raeford

NC GOP

Everything you need to know about the N.C. Republican Party was encapsulated in chairman Michael Whatley’s statement: “North Carolina Republicans sent Senator Burr to the United States Senate to uphold the Constitution and his vote today to convict in a trial that he declared unconstitutional is shocking and disappointing.”

He is wrong on all counts. Burr was elected and “sent” by the people of North Carolina, not the GOP. His job is to represent the entire state, not a minority base.

The Senate voted that the impeachment proceeding was constitutional. Burr swore an oath to be an impartial juror and he was. He considered the overwhelming evidence against Trump and fulfilled his oath.

Like so many in the thrall of Trump, Whatley seems to conflate the Constitution and slavish devotion to Trump. Fortunately for us, Burr knows the difference.

H.D. Maynard, Southern Pines

NC Democrats

I am losing confidence in North Carolina’s Democratic Party, in particular their candidate vetting process.

For example, the Cal Cunningham choice seemed particularly wrongheaded. How did the “vetting” process fail to uncover even a hint that his character might allow for a mid-campaign “indiscretion”? The result effectively turned a Democratic senatorial slam-dunk into another six years of Thom Tillis. Now, it has been revealed that Erica Smith is a defendant in an unresolved sexual assault lawsuit.

It’s understood that the lawsuit has yet to be adjudicated, but do N.C. Democrats not think the N.C. GOP won’t use this “gift” against Smith should she somehow achieve the Democratic nomination?

Who’s running the show, N.C. Democrats?

Patrick Sweeney, Raleigh

Vaccinations

I can empathize with the confidence and gratitude op-ed writer Jim Jenkins (Feb. 15) felt with his second COVID vaccination. I felt the same getting my second shot from WakeMed. But we all need to recognize the limitations of these vaccines. They protect us from getting seriously ill, but apparently they do not protect us from contracting the virus or passing it on to others. I fear masks and social distancing will be with us for at last another year, perhaps longer.

Robert Brown, Cary

At a crossroads

Human rights are supposed to entitle all people to life, liberty, and security without regard to race, sex, religion, or national origin. For Blacks and people of color that is an elusive ideal.

The U.S. government has ignored harms that have left our communities woefully neglected and created inequalities so stark that when a tragedy occurs, like Hurricane Katrina or a pandemic, the disparities are glaring.

We are at a human rights crossroads. I hope the current administration and the attitude of true Christianity will remove the hate of racism and provide a road map that includes rethinking oppressive policing tactics that lead to mass incarceration and address economic reinvestment of our communities. Doing so would elicit a different outcome for the humane existence we’re all promised.

Felicia Shepherd, Greensboro