Where the heck did Hegseth grow up?

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2024

A search for the nominee's worldview: Did he grow up in Forest Lake? Or was it Forest Lake Township?

We've spent some time, in recent days, seeking the historical Pete Hegseth. In truth, we've begun to feel sorry for this person—for a person who seems to have been tortured, down through the years, in various ways we haven't yet seen explained or explored.

Would you want to have behaved in the ways this person seems to have behaved? We're puzzled as to where it all began.

We're puzzled about where this story began. That brings us to Forest Lake, Minnesota—or perhaps to Forest Lake Township. The leading authority on this topic starts us off with this:

Pete Hegseth

[...]

Hegseth was born on June 6, 1980, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the son of Brian, a basketball coach, and Penny Hegseth. He was raised in nearby Forest Lake and is of Norwegian descent on both sides of the family. He attended Forest Lake Area High School, where he played football and basketball, graduating in 1999 as valedictorian of his class.

Hegseth went on to receive his Bachelor of Arts in politics at Princeton University in 2003. While there, he wrote for The Princeton Tory magazine and became its publisher...Hegseth also played basketball for the Tigers...

The authority says he was raised in Forest Lake and attended Forest Lake Area High School. But was he raised in Forest Lake, or might it have been Forest Lake Township?

Most likely, it makes little difference. That said, according to present-day norms, Hegseth seems to have a somewhat unusual view of the world—and as with Citizen Kane's tortured principal character, so too here:

We'd like to know if some sort of "Rosebud" informs this person's apparently unusual view of the world. The story begins in Forest Lake, though possibly next door in the Township.

What was Forest Lake, Minnesota like when Hegseth emerged from its public high school? Based on U.S. census figures, the leading authority reports the city's population at these stages along the way:

Forest Lake, Minnesota population
1980:  4,596
1990:  5,833
2000:  6,856
2010: 18,375

What explains that jump in population after Hegseth went off to Princeton? We're going to guess that the answer lies in this report about Forest Lake Township:

Forest Lake Township, Washington County, Minnesota

Forest Lake Township was a township in Washington County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 7,642 at the 2000 census. It is now a part of the city of Forest Lake.

Forest Lake Township's first settlers arrived in the latter half of the 1850s, and the township was officially established in 1893. In the same year, part of the township incorporated as the village of Forest Lake. In 2001, Forest Lake (by this point, a city) annexed the entire township.

Based on that capsule account, we'll assume that Forest Lake's population basically doubled when it annexed Forest Lake Township. Demographically, the evidence suggests that little changed when the annexation occurred. As the authority continues along, it offers this overview of the Township in 2000:

As of the census of 2000, there were 7,642 people, 2,628 households, and 2,178 families residing in the township...The racial makeup of the township was 97.66% White, 0.20% African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.31% from other races, and 0.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.93% of the population.

There were 2,628 households, out of which 39.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 74.8% were married couples living together...

[...]

The median income for a household in the township was $70,671, and the median income for a family was $74,564...About 1.7% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the poverty line.

Not that there's anything wrong with it! That said, Garrison Keillor made a career poking fun at Minnesota communities of this general type—communities "where all the women are strong, all the men are good-looking, and all the children are above average."

As best we can tell, the demographics of Forest Lake were similar to those of Forest Lake Township as of the year 2000. Each of those smaller communities was located in Washington County, and this is the leading authority's profile of that jurisdiction at that point in time:

Washington County, Minnesota

[...]

As of the census of 2000, there were 201,130 people, 71,462 households, and 54,668 families in the county...The racial makeup of the county was 93.63% White, 1.83% Black or African American, 0.39% Native American, 2.14% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.60% from other races, and 1.37% from two or more races.

The median income for a household in the county was $66,305, and the median income for a family was $74,576 (these figures had risen to $78,067 and $90,867 respectively as of a 2007 estimate)...About 2.00% of families and 2.90% of the population were below the poverty line.

It sounds like this entire county's inhabitants were (almost) all above average. One year earlier, a valedictorian had left the county to play basketball at Princeton. 

By the time he was 31, he was running for Amy Klobuchar's seat in the United States Senate! You can read about his announcement here.

At long last, the New York Times has now started to examine Hegseth's unusual religious views. They do so in a new report which carries this dual headline:

Pete Hegseth and His ‘Battle Cry’ for a New Christian Crusade
The veteran picked to lead the Defense Department has praised the brutal religious military campaigns of the past and has called for a Christian approach to governing.

"Unusual" doesn't mean "bad."  But how did this person end up in the various ways he has, apparently with a set of rather unusual views and with an astounding amount of unwarranted self-assurance?

Based on the text of his mother's famous email, there was already religious discomfort within the Hegseth family as of 2017. Given the circumstance of his nomination, it's long past time for our major news orgs to explore his apparently unusual views.

He grew up in a spotless land. Everyone was above average. At the time, that even included him!

For whatever reason, he seems to have had a lot of trouble along the way. Beyond that, he seems to have created a substantial amount of trouble for others.

At some point, we start feeling sorry for people who have lost their way. It also seems abundantly clear that they shouldn't be placed in high office.

The Times has begun to explore the nominee's religious views. What exactly are those views? And where might those views have come from?

How did this guy end up like this? It almost sounds like the guy grew up in an almost spotless land!