Politician for a dictatorship

Re “Kevin McCarthy, the spineless noodle who owes us the truth,” Opinion, Jan. 16

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield), about whom columnist Robin Abcarian writes so tellingly, is a poster boy for the first law of dictatorial government.

That law is that the first loyalty is not to good government, to a constitution or to the people, but rather to the “dear leader” — in this case former President Trump. It is now evident that not just McCarthy but also the entire Republican Party has adopted this practice and is no longer a political party in the American tradition.

We should understand these facts if we are to save our democracy. Thomas Alden

Palm Desert

McCarthy will never be speaker of the House. He committed the cardinal sin of speaking against the former Oval Office occupant, who has a long memory and never forgives a slight.

If — and here I don’t concede anything — the party out of power is restored in 2022, look for Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.), the current House minority whip, to get the blessing. He lurks in the corners like a reptile waiting to strike its oblivious prey.

McCarthy, with his blind ambition, doesn’t see the danger.

Melissa Verdugo Rancho Palos Verdes

My thanks to Abcarian for calling out McCarthy as a spineless liar. But what’s the point? You can’t shame someone who has no sense of shame.

He and a majority of his Republican colleagues have embraced former Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway’s world of “alternative facts.” They are making voting harder for people they don’t like, and making sure the votes are counted by people they do like.

I believe American democracy is in for a rough patch.

Bart Braverman Indio