Black Belt and Blue Water
head coach of the Buffalo Bills ,” as saying that Allen himself conceived of the play and suggested it to Nixon who then could take credit for having recommended it . If this is true , it could be seen as consistent with other devious Nixon actions ( Watterson 2006 237 ; 241-243 ). Watterson also describes a severe wrist injury from a fall that Jefferson experienced in his early forties , causing permanent pain . He called it “ possibly the worst sports injury in pre-presidential history ” ( Watterson 2006 14 ).
Watterson concluded that Washington ’ s presidency would likely not have happened had it not been for his “ athleticism at the Battle of Monongahela in 1754 .” More fundamentally , he concedes that “ at first glance , these activities [ sports and games of presidents ] had little to do with their public lives . Jackson ’ s ownership of racehorses and Abraham Lincoln ’ s feats of strength tell us little about their presidencies or their political appeal .” Looked at from “ a different perspective ,” however , he argues that these activities of earlier presidents “ provide glimpses of talents and traits that would carry them to power or even the shadowy outlines of what they would become as president ” ( Watterson 2006 5 ; 12 ).
Even for later presidents there may be truth to this . Kennedy ’ s heroism in swimming for four hours pulling a crew member to safety after his torpedo boat had been sunk presaged his functioning as president despite constant severe pain . Nixon ’ s dogged attempt to play sports suggested his later determination to prevail , right up until his downfall . Clinton ’ s description of an attack before he was in high school is highly significant . One Henry Hill “ slugged me in the jaw as hard as he could ,” Clinton said . “ Now , I was big for my age , about five nine , 185 pounds . But Henry Hill was six foot six with an enormous reach . No way was I going to hit back . Besides , to my amazement , it didn ’ t hurt too badly . So ,” Clin-
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