Last year I lost a congressional primary race on a platform that explicitly criticized former President Trump’s behavior after the 2020 election and implored my fellow Republicans to move on from that man’s demagoguery. Referencing my loss, Karl Rove wrote: “Rather than turning off many conservative voters, GOP candidates who have problems with Mr. Trump should focus on the actions of congressional Democrats and the future, not the former president” (“Voters Can Spot Radical Left-Wing Policy,” op-ed, May 6, 2021).

Now, Mr. Rove writes, “To move beyond Jan. 6, 2021, [Republicans] must put country ahead of party. . . . There can be no soft-pedaling what happened and no absolution for those who planned, encouraged and aided the attempt to overthrow our democracy. Love of country demands nothing less. That’s true patriotism” (“Republicans’ Jan. 6 Responsibility,” op-ed, Jan. 6).

This may not rise to the level of hypocrisy, but it is still annoying: Minimize Mr. Trump’s despicable postelection actions when we need money or votes, but denounce those actions periodically when we want praise from the majority of Americans horrified by Jan. 6, 2021.

This tap dance may work. It might even be good politics for the Republican Party for now. But it is bad for the country and will look cowardly in the future if, God forbid, Jan. 6 was only a precursor to more violence and chaos.