The "Tiny Tackle" of Dartmouth's late-1960s football team, Treasury Secretary Henry "Hank" Paulson '68, may have to conjure up the football grit he was known for to conquer his newest foe: a Wall Street meltdown of proportions unseen since the Great Depression. The former CEO and chairman of Goldman Sachs is the principal architect of the $700 million economic bailout plan -- voted down in the House of Representatives yesterday -- designed to prevent the U.S. credit crunch from wreaking havoc on the global economy.
Selected as the starting offensive tackle for the Big Green his freshman year, despite his relatively meager 6'1" and 185 lbs. frame, Paulson started on the team during each of his four years at Dartmouth, according to friend and former colleague Peter Fahey '68, a major financial supporter of the College.
"When Coach [Robert] Blackman called him his 'Tiny Tackle,' [Paulson] would just say, 'the bigger they are, the harder they fall,'" his mother, Marianna Paulson, said. "He was very quick once that whistle blew, but he never jumped ahead of time. He really was tough, he didn't mind being battered around out there, and he usually came out the better for it."
Paulson chose to attend Dartmouth because he was a good student and wanted to play football, his mother said, adding that the rural setting appealed to him.
Paulson was a versatile and dedicated student who majored in English, but enrolled in math and physics courses as well, according to Bruce Mahall '68, Paulson's roommate at Dartmouth.
In addition to being a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Paulson also belonged to Casque and Gauntlet senior society and Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, where he was known as "The Phantom" because he spent so little time there, Mahall said.
"He had a general Dartmouth mystique about him," Mahall said. "Anyone who knew him knew there was something very special about him."
A native of Barrington, Ill., Paulson, whom his mother describes as an energetic and enthusiastic boy who loved nature and animals, grew up on a small family farm.
"He wanted a pet raccoon when he was a boy, so he set a trap and caught everything but a raccoon," Marianna Paulson said. "He was also always an energetic student and very competitive."
She recalled when Hank Paulson and his younger brother Dick tried to catch a baby skunk, adding that the brothers often ended up in "usual childhood problems."
She added that Paulson and his siblings were raised as Christian Scientists and attended weekly Sunday school. Paulson continues to abstain from alcohol and tobacco.
Paulson attended Harvard Business School following his graduation from Dartmouth, then went on to work at the Pentagon as staff assistant to the assistant secretary of defense for former President Richard Nixon's administration.
Paulson transitioned into the private sector in 1974, beginning a 35-year career with Goldman Sachs.
Paulson's ability to serve the needs of his clients at the firm allowed him to rise through the ranks as partner, then president and finally as chief executive officer and chairman, John Gilbertson '79, a managing director at Goldman Sachs, told The Dartmouth.
Gilbertson also noted Paulson's commitment to balancing his work and family responsibilites. His daughter, Amanda Paulson '97, added that when her father was a junior banker at Goldman Sachs, he would take the 4:45 p.m. express train home every night in order to spend time with his three children before returning to work after the children were put to bed.
Paulson began his career at Goldman Sachs in what was then known as the "New Business Department," Fahey said.
The department was one of the first in the industry to sell a bank's investment services to others, and it was unusual for a man as young as Paulson to be hired there, Fahey explained.
"[Paulson] was hired by a senior partner in the Chicago office named Jim Gelder, who I once heard say, 'You know Hank, we ordinarily don't hire guys as young as you into this role, but you know, you look old,' because Hank always had a receding hairline," Fahey said.
At the company, Paulson earned the nickname "The Hammer" because of his assertive personality. He won business by impressing people with his dedication to achieving clients' goals, Fahey said.
"Once clients got to know Hank, they loved and trusted him," Gilbertson said. "[Clients] trusted his motives and respected his advice ... Hank always worried about his clients' problems and goals -- never himself."
Paulson's tenure at Goldman Sachs polished him for his current position, Gilbertson said, pointing to Paulson's leadership during financial crises in 1998 and 2001 as preparation for the Secretary of the Treasury job.
Paulson, the third Treasury secretary to serve on George W. Bush's cabinet, assumed the post in June 2006, replacing former Secretary John Snow.
"He wasn't sure if he wanted to go [to Washington], and he definitely felt 'no' was a hard thing to say -- no to serving your country," his daughter Amanda Paulson '97 said. "He wanted to be there if he could be of use."
"I hope the American populace knows how fortunate we are to have a guy of his talent," Fahey said. "I assure you if he was not there, we would be in a much worse situation than we are now."
