Sophia A. Nelson

Opinion contributor

Something is really bothering me. I was struck by what the Senate chaplain, retired Rear Admiral Barry Black, said in his prayer on Wednesday afternoon at the beginning of the first day of arguments in the Senate impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.

He prayed, in part: "Help them remember that patriots reside on both sides of the aisle." The “them” he was referring to, of course, were the senators, House managers and president’s counsel gathered in the chamber. His words stirred my soul and they have pulsed throughout my disrupted spirit ever since. They have made me restless, troubled me, and challenged me as a devout Christian and lifelong Republican to face a harsh reality: that the vast majority of people in my political party of more than 30 years are not acting like patriots.

Patriotism, I'm afraid, has left the building.

Patriotism is not about words. Patriotism is about what we do. Patriotism is about what we stand for, who we stand up to and what we are willing to put on the line. Patriotism is about truth, honor, liberty, equality and freedom. The Republican-held Senate voted down all 11 amendments introduced by the minority party. Worse, Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn attacked decorated Iraq War veteran Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman on Twitter Thursday, and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz tweeted about a "drinking game" when the word "drug deal" or "get over it" is used by House Managers.

Watching impeachment from outside

Like many Americans, I am riveted by this impeachment process. This is my second impeachment in 22 years, which is amazing, given that we have only had three in all of American history. For my first impeachment in 1998-1999, I was a 20-something working as investigative counsel in the Government Reform and Oversight Committee in the House of Representatives when President Bill Clinton was impeached by the Republican majority. Today, I am an author and legal commentator. The view is very different as someone covering and commentating on impeachment versus working on Capitol Hill producing documents, taking depositions and being in the thicket of history.

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Yet, I am troubled because I do not believe you can be both a patriot and be complicit in tyranny at the same time. It is not possible. The Republican House members and now, the Republican senators, are all intelligent and accomplished people. Perhaps, they are even good people who have somehow taken leave of themselves, and turned on their countrymen to support the flawed and dangerous leader of their party.

They know Trump is guilty. Many of them, according to presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld and former Arizona Sen. Jeff Flake, would like to vote to convict the president. As House Manager Adam Schiff of California said Thursday night: "Right matters. ... If right doesn’t matter, it doesn’t matter how good the Constitution is. ... If right doesn’t matter, we’re lost. If the truth doesn’t matter, we’re lost."

I can no longer keep silent about what I see on social media, in my community, even in my church. Trump's supporters are not bad people, and that is what makes it so hard to swallow. These Republican lawmakers are people who have sold themselves to a circus ringmaster. He is the Pied Piper and they are following him, taking the country with them as they walk into destruction.

Jesus asked, “Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water?" Of course not. In this moment, the Republicans have to choose: Save the republic or give cover to Trump? This nation is better than what the Republicans are showing us now.

Republicans were once courageous

In the end, America is the story of us — of all of us. We are in this together. Like it or not, we all play a part in this great American story. I am a direct descendant of an African slave girl and an Irish slave owner's son from Georgia. My story hearkens to the very founding of our nation.

It took courageous Republican members of Congress in 1865 to pass the 13th Amendment to end slavery. It was not popular. It was not in their best political interest. They were called “Radical Republicans,” led by men like Rep. Thaddeus Stevens during Abraham Lincoln's presidency. These men were patriots. They did what was right to preserve the republic. To make it live up to the founders ideals of equality and liberty for all men.

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In this moment, as the president's lawyers begin their defense, Republicans must summon that same courage. This is that kind of consequential moment. This is a historic moment — the national security, the national sanctity and the global superiority of America are on the line.

The Founding Fathers are watching. They whisper to us across the ages to remember the guard rails that they put on our young democracy in 1787 when they ratified the U.S. Constitution. They remind us that patriots stand for something when it counts, no matter the political cost.

Sophia A. Nelson is a CNN commentator, journalist and author of “E Pluribus One: Reclaiming Our Founders' Vision for a United America.” She is a senior adviser to The Lincoln Project. Follow her on Twitter: @IAmSophiaNelson