Peter Laffin

United States

Writer at National Catholic Register

Contributor at The Catholic Thing

Contributor at Washington Examiner

Contributor at The Catholic Herald

Mens concordet voci. Staff Writer @NCRegister, words in @CatholicThing @CathHerald @dcexaminer

Articles

Is Taiwan worth the fight?

1 week ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

The days of the United States being the world’s police force are over — and good riddance. The idealist’s vision of a U.S.-enforced rules-based international order, noble as it might have been once, was never firmly rooted in reality. Perpetual global instability meant perpetual military interventions, and even America’s vaunted military might has limits.
Trump’s misdealing in Canada turns lemonade into lemons

2 weeks ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

President Donald Trump is, as they say, transactional by nature, not an ideologue. His philosophy is to exert leverage by every means necessary and secure results that magnify his power and prestige. This is how he conquered the Republican Party, won the presidency twice, brokered the Abraham Accords, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, and more.
The Trump administration’s original sin imperils its agenda and legacy

2 weeks ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

Former President Barack Obama rode into the White House in 2009 with historic potential, having won a landslide victory over a Republican legend and a Senate supermajority. But Obama squandered his opportunity to restore hope to a nation beset by cynicism after Iraq and the 2008 financial crisis by refusing to prosecute top executives of the financial firms responsible.
Democrats remain spectators in Trump’s America

2 weeks ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s (D-NY) “Fighting Oligarchy” rally tour has injected life into a listless Democratic Party. The messaging pivot from race-centric politics toward classic leftist class struggle is savvy: Economics unites where race divides, and class warfare polls better than DEI.
America First might mean Hegseth has to go

3 weeks ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is again under fire for sharing sensitive intelligence about impending military operations in Yemen on the messaging app Signal. This chat, which included the flight schedules for the F-18 Hornet fighter jets involved in the mission, was created on Hegseth’s personal phone under the name “Defense | Team Huddle” and included his wife, brother, personal lawyer, and others. Hegseth did not deny the report in a fiery exchange with reporters on the White House lawn.
Easter is the light shining in the darkness

3 weeks ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

It’s easy to forget how strange the story of Jesus’s resurrection is, or how it might sound to someone hearing it for the first time. The broad strokes — God became human, taught and healed, was crucified by those he loved, and then rose from the dead — might cause a curious alien to tilt his head and squint. The “Good News” of Jesus’ resurrection — a term Christians subversively borrowed from Roman military proclamations — has always been difficult to explain.
Columbia professors hypocritically protest speech suppression

4 weeks ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

At a rally at Columbia University last week, faculty brandished placards that read “Defend Freedom of Speech” and “Defend Academic Freedom.” One faculty member waved a sign reading, “No appeasement. I’m German. I know where this leads.”Joseph Howley, an associate professor of classics, said that “attacks” on free speech result in a “chilling effect in the classroom.”Howley and his colleagues are right, of course.
Trump flexes on a hobbled Iran

1 month ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

News of a rapid expansion of U.S. forces in the Middle East flew under the radar as President Donald Trump’s tariff policy captivated the world. With direct U.S.-Iran talks set for Saturday in Oman, according to the White House, the deployment surge signaled Trump’s eagerness to play what he believes is a strong hand against the United States’s longtime foe, which has been weakened by recent events. Iran has contradicted the White House’s claim, saying the talks will be held indirectly.
The Resistance 2.0 power rankings: April

1 month ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

The power vacuum at the top of the Democratic Party has created a fresh competition to steer its ship through the political wilderness. Contenders have emerged from across the Democratic sweep: Squad sisters, media mouths, graying senators, and motley liberal luminaries vie for the influence and notoriety that come with being “the face” of the party.
How to lose a Golden Era in 60 seconds or less

1 month ago | washingtonexaminer.com | Peter Laffin

It was a marvelous scene in the Capitol Rotunda that day, wasn’t it? Marbled walls glimmered in the morning sunlight, titans of industry standing in homage, and President Donald Trump’s vanquished foes sitting behind him, their faces baffled and pained. Over the next two months, Trump and company pressed their advantage mercilessly — and with a wry smile.