left handed presidents

Left-Handed Presidents of the United States

In the past hundred years, we have had as many as eight left-handed U.S. presidents. Here is brief information about the presidents of the United States who were left-handed and/or ambidextrous.

Being left-handed can be defined, in simplest terms, as a natural feature of preferring the use of left hand over the right one. Majority of the world's population is right-handed, which makes being left-handed uncommon and at times, unusual. In the earlier times, lefties (also known as Southpaws) were looked down upon by the society, as it was associated with evil, immorality, and wrongdoing. However, left-handedness is a natural phenomenon. Did you know that there have been many famous and influential left-handed people in the world? Do not believe it? Well, for one, take a look at the left-handed U.S. presidents of the 20th century, viz. Herbert Hoover, Henry Truman, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. President James Garfield was also believed to be left-handed or even ambidextrous, but, there is little evidence proving it. Left-Handed U.S. Presidents We do not have any reliable information about the handedness of U.S. presidents of the earlier times. Similarly, it was a common practice in the earlier times to force children to switch to right handedness in case they were born left-handed. Therefore, knowing their exact handedness is difficult. But, from the 20th century, we have a list of left-handed U.S. presidents. ► Herbert Hoover (1874 - 1964) Herbert Hoover was the 31st President of the United States. He was in office from March 4, 1929 to March 4, 1933. Hoover's cabinet tried to combat the Great Depression of the 1929 to a great extent. ► Harry S. Truman (1884 - 1972) Harry Truman succeeded President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and became the 33rd President of the United States. He was in office from April 12, 1945 to January 20, 1953. The Allies gained victory in Europe in the Second World War during Truman's tenure. ► Gerald Ford (1913 - 2006) The 38th President of the United States, Gerald Ford became the president after the resignation of Richard Nixon. His tenure in office lasted from August 9, 1974 to January 20, 1977. He is the only person having served as the Vice President and President of the United States, without being elected, till date. ► Ronald Reagan (1911 - 2004)
Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, the two Republican Presidents of the U.S., were ambidextrous.
President Ronald Reagan, the 40th President of the United States, was in office from January 20, 1981 to January 20, 1989. Reagan is considered as one of the most famous U.S. presidents, and his efforts for ending the Cold War are particularly noteworthy. ► George H.W. Bush (1924) Left-handed President George H.W. Bush, was the 41st President of the U.S., being in office from January 20, 1989 to January 20, 1993. As of 2013, he is the oldest surviving former President of the USA. ► Bill Clinton (1946) Successor of the left-handed President George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton is also left-handed. He was the 42nd President of the U.S., being in office from January 20, 1993 to January 20, 2001. His wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton was the United States Secretary of State (2009-2013). ► Barack Obama (1961) The 44th and the incumbent President of the United States, Barack Obama is left-handed. He assumed the office in 2009. He is also the first African-American president of the country.
James A. Garfield (1831 - 1881) James Garfield was the 20th President of the United States. He was in office for a mere 200 days, from March 4, 1881 until his assassination in September 19, 1881. It is believed that Garfield was ambidextrous, but, there is little authentic evidence proving it.
Today, rare cases of discrimination among left- and right-handed people are observed. In fact, it is believed that left-handed people have a bit of a higher IQ level than right-handed ones. Left-handed individuals are also more likely to excel in the fields of sports. However, this observation has not been clinically proven, and hence, endless debates and discussions are carried out to verify the theory.

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