As has been diaried here earlier (by Susan S and oldnorthstate), former U of Tennessee quarterback Heath Shuler will be competing in a Democratic primary to challenge Rep. Charles Taylor in North Carolina's 11th Congressional district.
There was an interesting article in yesterday's Washington Post by sportswriter Leonard Shapiro, who had come to know Shuler during his ill-fated tenure for the Washington Redskins from 1994-96.
Besides talking to the usual suspects while making up his mind whether to run or not, Shapiro reveals that Shuler also received a telephone call from the Big Dog (after the jump)....
While he was still making up his mind, Shuler got a call from former president Bill Clinton, who also urged him to run. "He reminded me that we both were in Washington at the same time in the '90s," Shuler said. "He said to me, 'There were days you took the heat off me on the front page of The Washington Post.' The position of being president and the number one quarterback for the Redskins in Washington are both pretty important. We laughed about who got the most heat, and then he told me he appreciated how I had handled myself back then, that I always had a smile on my face even when things were going badly. He encouraged me to go after it and run."
For the full article, use this link:
Heath Shuler