Pete Hegseth has worn many uniforms in his life — a decorated Army veteran, a Fox News anchor, a bestselling author. But on a quiet Friday night, in a parking lot outside a modest family restaurant in Nashville, he showed the world his most powerful role yet:
The Hegseth family was out for a simple night together. Pete, his wife Jennifer, and three of their seven children had just finished up a Little League game and were heading to a favorite local barbecue spot. It had been a long week. The kids were giggling in the back seat. Life felt normal.
A man — maybe late 30s, unshaven, worn jeans, clutching a battered backpack — sitting quietly on the curb near the restaurant’s entrance. Beside him, wrapped in a faded pink hoodie and holding a cracked plastic cup, was a little girl no older than five.
