Barack Obama

Obama was born in Honolulu, Hawaii to Barack Obama, Sr. (born in Nyanza Province, Kenya) and Ann Dunham (born in Wichita, Kansas). Barack Hussein Obama (born August 4, 1961) is the junior United States Senator from Illinois and a member of the Democratic Party.

Obama grew up in culturally diverse surroundings. He spent most of his childhood in the majority-minority U.S. state of Hawaii and lived for four years in Indonesia. Obama delivered the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention while still an Illinois state legislator. Since announcing his candidacy in February 2007, Obama has emphasized ending the Iraq War and implementing universal health care as campaign themes.

As a member of the Democratic minority in the 109th Congress, Obama co-sponsored the enactment of conventional weapons control and transparency legislation, and made official trips to Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Obama's parents separated when he was two years old and later divorced. His father went to Harvard University to pursue Ph.D. studies, then returned to Kenya, where he died in an auto accident when the younger Obama was twenty-one years old.



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today's papers A Boost for Obama By Ben Whitford Posted Sunday, Jan. 27, 2008, at 5:19 AM ET Everyone leads with reports from South Carolina, where Barack Obama scored a resounding victory in yesterday's Democratic primary. Obama won about 55 percent of the total vote, thanks to overwhelming support from black voters; Hillary Clinton trailed on 27 percent, while John Edwards came a distant third. The New York Times argues that the win puts Obama back on level footing with Clinton in the run-up to coast-to-coast voting on Feb. 5; the Washington Post agrees, noting that Obama's margin of victory was far higher than anyone had anticipated. The Los Angeles Times bemoans the racially charged campaigning that preceded the vote; the results also prompted questions about Obama's ability to make good on his message of unity. While he netted four-fifths of the black vote in South Carolina, Obama won the backing of only a quarter of white voters - and as the Post notes, that polarization could allow his opponents to cast his appeal in narrower terms than he would like. To continue reading, click here. Ben Whitford writes for the Guardian and Newsweek, and edits the Backyard Briefing, a blog about Latin American news and politics. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Business & Tech Zenware: How To Build a Distraction- Free Desktop Health & Science It's Time for Us To Start Drinking Toilet Water Sports I Just Bought Six Shares of a Minor League Ballplayer	Advertisement
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