Readers Write: Hegseth confirmed, Holocaust Remembrance Day, House chaos

Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes letters from readers online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

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I am proud to be a Minnesotan and even prouder that Minnesota was the home or adopted home of noteworthy statesmen including Hubert Humphrey, Walter Mondale, Paul Wellstone, Eugene McCarthy, Don Fraser and Martin Sabo. Even if you did not agree with their politics, there was no doubt these individuals were committed to serving their constituents and our state with moral values and dignity. Given the pride I have always felt for these politicians, I was saddened to learn that Pete Hegseth, a Minnesota native, has been confirmed to serve as our country’s secretary of defense.

Hegseth does not embody the ideals and qualities many of us have admired in our past Minnesota politicians. Hegseth’s past behavior in his personal relationships is questionable at best and his former stance on women serving in combat in the military is indicative of his views regarding women’s equality. (I am also alarmed that Hegseth does not have the experience or expertise to lead the Defense Department and his appointment puts our country at great risk). Today I will still tout my Minnesota roots and take pride in our past Minnesota statesmen who have served Minnesota so admirably, but I feel remorseful that homegrown Pete Hegseth has blemished Minnesota’s reputation for thoughtful, hardworking, decent political leaders.

Sylvia Fine, Minneapolis

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Forty-one. That’s the number of active duty four-star officers in the U.S. armed services. Eleven in the Army. Three in the Marines. Nine in the Navy. Fourteen in the Air Force. Three in the Space Force. And one in the Coast Guard. These individuals attended the top U.S. military academies. All of them have decades of service in their respective military branches. Many of them have had combat experience. As four-star generals/admirals, they each have been involved in critical decisions involving the deployment of hundreds of thousands of service men and women who have dedicated their lives to protecting the U.S. and our country’s interests around the globe.

Disappointingly, none of these generals were considered by our country’s new commander in chief to become the secretary of defense. Instead, the president selected Hegseth to lead two-million-plus service men and women and the nearly 800,000 civilians who support the military. Hegseth did not attend a military academy. But, in fairness, he does have military experience — he served in the National Guard, with one year of combat deployment in Iraq approximately 20 years ago. After his military experience he became the executive director of the nonprofit Vets For Freedom. It has been reported that within two years of Hegseth’s leadership, VFF was a half a million dollars in debt, and Hegseth’s compensation was reduced from $45,000 to $5,000 annually. Hegseth also was involved with another nonprofit, Concerned Veterans for America, which also forced him out in the face of allegations of financial mismanagement, sexual harassment and personal misconduct. For seven years, Hegseth was a part-time cohost on “Fox & Friends.”

Clearly, Hegseth was more qualified than the 41 four-star generals who have devoted their entire professional lives to protecting this country. Great pick, Mr. President. Nice job, Senate Republicans who supported his nomination (though three of them voted against Hegseth).

Roy Ginsburg, Minneapolis

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I am a 69-year-old white guy who finds it ironic that a totally unqualified, middle-aged white guy has been put in charge of the Pentagon to get rid of DEI and establish a “meritocracy” where the only “merit” is submission to the whims of his elderly white guy boss.

Terry Ulrich, Rush City, Minn.

This Monday was International Holocaust Remembrance Day. That day is a reminder of the inhumanity of humans and the importance of standing up against hatred and dehumanization.

In just the first few days of his presidency, Donald Trump has done more to endanger Americans than any other American leader in history. The most dangerous for Jews was his granting of pardons to more than 1,500 Jan. 6 insurrectionists. Those released from jail include the heads of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, domestic extremists, antisemites and white supremacists. Proud Boys wear shirts declaring “6MWE” — which stands for “six million wasn’t enough” — a reference to Jewish deaths during the Holocaust. Those pardoned by Trump also include the rioter who donned a “Camp Auschwitz” sweatshirt.

Whether Elon Musk intended his loving salute at Trump’s inauguration to resemble a Nazi salute is irrelevant. Neo-Nazis are embracing it, Musk has made jokes about Nazis and endorsed Alternative fuer Deutschland, an extremist right-wing party in Germany. These are despicable things to be doing when rates of antisemitic incidents are skyrocketing. When even Al Jazeera prints: “There is a renewed attempt in the US, Europe and beyond to minimise and sanitise the horrors of Nazism,” you know there’s something wrong.

Holly Rothkopf, Boynton Beach, Fla.

Dear Reps. Lisa Demuth and Melissa Hortman,

When you both decided to share leadership in the House, I was impressed and thought that this session would be historic and successful in passing meaningful bills for Minnesota residents. I was disappointed when this did not work out. My disappointment comes from my need to have a stable state government. With the federal chaos, Minnesota must work to counteract orders that affect its citizens. We look to you to give us that confidence that our needs are being considered and are at the top of state priorities.

Please, please share leadership and get to work. I need you to create a sense of stability and the knowledge that you are truly doing what is best for all citizens.

Mary Spalding, Edina

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I’m particularly troubled by the framing of the front-page Jan. 26 article titled, “Residency violation is haunting DFL.”

The writers posit, “The partisan standoff between Democrats and Republicans in the Minnesota House might never have materialized if the DFL would have backed a different candidate in a Roseville-area election. The DFL’s decision to support Curtis Johnson’s candidacy for a safely blue Roseville-area House seat has haunted the party since a judge ruled in December that Johnson didn’t live in the district and was ineligible to take office. That ruling turned a 67-67 tie into a 67-66 advantage for House Republicans, prompting GOP lawmakers to back away from a power-sharing agreement with the DFL.”

Backing a candidate who lived outside the district was boneheaded, to be sure. Even still, this “partisan standoff” could have been avoided had Minnesota House Republicans upheld the laws in place and not tried to reinvent the definition of a quorum. This “partisan standoff,” or attempted coup as other have rightly called it, could also have been avoided had Minnesota House Republicans upheld the close but legitimate election in House District 54A, rather than refusing to seat the legitimate election winner.

Even with the DFL’s absurd gaffe, the state could have done without a week of a sham House government if the House GOP was willing to abide by election results and also the rule of legislative order.

Why is it so hard to say that?

Elliot Mann, Edina

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In the Jan. 23 issue of the Minnesota Star Tribune, Rochelle Olson wrote the article, “Court to hear arguments over House quorum.” The article was outstanding for many reasons: It addressed a timely topic; it posed relevant questions pertaining to the topic; it answered those questions in one or two easily understandable sentences; it was informative and educational; it was not politically or socially biased. In short, it was an excellent explanation of the issue along with a brief representation of the arguments of the opposing positions and the associated legal considerations. This type of writing should be the gold standard for all reporters who wish to inform their readers of the issues and leave their readers space to draw their own conclusions.

Robert Guelich, Edina