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 Desperate Hours By Daniel Politi Posted Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2008, at 6:10 AM ET The New York Times leads with news that President Bush acknowledged yesterday that the country faces "economic challenges" and noted "recent economic indicators have become increasingly mixed." Although Bush didn't say anything about a recession, it marked a shift in message for a president who has always been decidedly upbeat about the economy, and is the clearest sign yet that the next big Congress vs. White House fight will be over the best way to stimulate the economy. USA Today leads with preliminary FBI statistics that show murder fell 6.5 percent in the country's largest cities during the first half of 2007, but increased in smaller cities. Violent crime as a whole fell almost 2 percent, which marks the first time in two years that there's been a decrease. The Los Angeles Times and Washington Post lead with the presidential campaigns and the last ditch efforts to convince New Hampshire voters before today's primary. Both papers note that the "five-day sprint from Iowa to New Hampshire" (WP) have clearly taken a toll on the candidates. Sen. Hillary Clinton choked up for a moment and her eyes "welled with tears" (NYT) when answering a question about the campaign, while Sen. Barack Obama had a hoarse voice and sometimes messed up his lines. The LAT notes that a record 500,000 people are expected to cast a ballot today. The Wall Street Journal also leads its worldwide newsbox with New Hampshire and says some "Clinton associates" have been pushing the senator to quit the race early if she loses big today, and several senators that had been undecided are in talks to sign up with Obama's camp. To continue reading, click here. Daniel Politi writes "Today's Papers" for Slate. He can be reached at todayspapers@slate.com. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE \| READ MESSAGES Also In Slate News & Politics I Got My Baby Photographed With Every Candidate--but One News & Politics How Do You Survive a 47-Story Fall? News & Politics I Love C-SPAN's Dully Mesmerizing Campaign Coverage	Advertisement
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